The Common State of Innocent Violence
by The Great Mikey Weston
Summary: A semi-satirical OC-insert. Five friends are at summer camp, bored to tears, when they find a prophecy in an old lore book- and subsequently wind up in Hyrule. Given the fabled title of "Four Sword Guardians", they must protect the Four Sword and its bearers from harm as they venture to save the kingdom and Princess Zelda. Bonds are forged, jokes are made, shade is thrown.
1. Pilot

_Here I am, once again. I'm torn into pieces. Can't deny it, can't pretend. Just thought you were the one._

 _... Ahem._

 _Howdy! It's been a while since I've been on this site. I've been pretty eager to write an OCI story with some satirical elements, because sarcasm is a very strong suit of mine, so... I'm back! From the makers of **Insert Epic Title Here** and (the unfortunately deleted) **Four Swords Facebook** , I bring you an actual, serious fic series: **The Common State of Innocent Violence.**_

 _... Yes, even the title is a joke._

 _I'm projecting this story to end at about chapter 20. Oh, and t_ _his is NOT going to be the regular length of each episode. Think of this 12,000-something word chapter as the hour-and-a-half long series pilot. Episodes from this point on are gonna be... somewhere around the 5k mark, I'd say._

 _... Are people still doing disclaimers on this site, or is that so five years ago and I'm being an old hag by doing one?_

 _ **Disclaimer:** While I do not own any part of Nintendo or the Legend of Zelda franchise, nor do I own the original Legend of Zelda: Four Swords manga, I am the creator of many of the concepts that will appear in this series, along with the five main OCs._

* * *

 **episode 1: Pilot**

There is a certain way in which kids, teens, and unnatural creatures tend to be pulled into an adventure, and their calling comes from one of two things: by pure unadulterated accident, or they are chosen for their task. It is a curious thing, when higher powers direct chosen ones- because often, their chosen ones are simply picked from a distance after careful observation. How they handle the situation is an entirely different beast.

Also, we're not going to tell you how adults are chosen, because more often than not, the answer is simply that: they aren't.

Adventures are difficult, long, life-changing missions, and they are reserved for the young and bright of heart only. World-weary thirty-somethings are simply not suited to frolic about in the midst of war and battle. No, only the wide-eyed children can be sent to save a country from a cruel fate, and that, friends, is simply the way things are- and the way things have always been. How foolish, how ignorant, would it be to suggest that perhaps they are not prepared to face needless bloodshed and death? Truly distasteful.

But anyway, five twelve-year-olds sat in a cabin.

It sure as heck wasn't a log cabin. It was one of those cabins they had at indoor summer camps, or at camps for preteen girls or something of the like, where the walls looked like brick but were actually plaster, and the floor was a really uncomfortably cold tile, and the beds had iron posts and horrible mattresses. One of _those_ cabins, in one of _those_ evenings when it was too early to go to sleep but too late to do anything.

A loud whine emitted from one of the beds, and its owner- a red-head with dramatic blonde highlights- flopped face-down onto her pillow. Her pink skirt hitched up to her thighs and her side ponytail splayed all over the pillowcase, but she didn't budge an inch. "I'm boooooored."

No one actually bothered to answer her. In fact, every single other person in the room was reading. A tiny, pale girl with long black hair hung off the side of her bed on her back, mouth slightly open as she read the colorful comic book in her hands. An equally small (but perhaps taller) girl's entire head, plus her shoulders, were covered in the enormous leatherbound book she had buried her nose in. In the far corner of the room, a still fully-dressed (down to the shoes) boy with a scruffy haircut very seriously turned a page of what appeared to be a textbook. And across from the redhead, a tall black girl slowly chewed a candy bar as she read some fantasy book or other one-handed.

The redhead looked up from her pillow to stare, pouting, at the girl in the bed across from her. "Cheeeeerryyyyyy," she whined loudly.

The girl called Cherry lowered her book slightly to look up at the redhead mildly.

"Can we do something?" The redhead frowned.

"No, Cricket, there's nothing to do." Cherry rolled her eyes good-naturedly as she went back to her novel. "Seriously, you should've brought a book."

"No. Nothing to read. Read all the time. Magazines. Cool girl books." Cricket lifted herself up on her forearms, her eyes widening- they appeared a deep shade of brown. " _High school romance novels,_ " she stage whispered, as if telling a scandalous secret.

"Uh huh." Cherry nodded vaguely as she went to take another bite of her her candy bar.

"Cherry, be real, here." The black haired girl's intensely purple eyes didn't move as she stared blankly at the comic book in her hands- it was more than apparent that she wasn't really looking at it. "There's nothing to do in the daytime, either. This camp sucks."

Cherry lifted her head and frowned over at the much smaller girl in the bed diagonal from her. "Hey, y'know, my parents _paid_ for you to come to this camp. Watch it."

"Cherry." The girl's voice was dull. "I'm not kidding. Give me your honest opinion on this place."

Cherry hesitated, her book falling slightly limp in her hand. Her lips pursed unwillingly.

"Don't worry, Tammy," Cricket declared, getting up on her knees and throwing a hand in the air. "When I get rich- and famous, famous too- I'm gonna pay for all of us to go to a way better summer camp. ...AND SEND NATO TO THE RIGHT CAMP, BY THE WAY."

The dark-haired boy- Fortunato was his name- jumped horribly and looked up in alarm at the sound of his name. Cherry squinted at him for a long time.

"Okay," she said slowly, "I'm still confused. How'd he wind up here with us, again?"

"Folks made a dumb mistake." Tammy's tone was lifeless. "Sent him to the all-girls' camp instead of the all-boys' one and the counselors stuck him in here with us because we know him."

"Which is a shaaaaame," Cricket declared, putting her hands on her hips, "because everyone woulda loved him. Seriously. Everyone. Everyone would be in love with him right now. But they're not. They put him here and now no one's in love with him."

"Well," Nato said simply, putting a hand to his chest, "...I don't think that will be for _too_ long. But it can wait as long as it needs. If someone comes after me, I'll accept."

Tammy cracked a lazy grin as she let the comic book fall down on her face. "Dude, calm down, the counselors would kick you out if you tried. And speaking of someone being too thirsty, I know _I_ am. ...For a _better camp._ " She lifted her hands and double-pistol winked at no one in particular.

Cherry's expression clearly read "God have mercy on my soul".

Cricket, who had slouched back again, shot up into a sitting position. "The lemonade!" she exclaimed suddenly at Tammy's statement. "Did you try it? The lemonade is watery! The food is watery! The _water_ is watery! There's water _everywhere!_ "

"Cricket, we're right by a lake," Cherry pointed out in amusement.

" _The lake is most watery!_ "

"Does anyone want to hear a story?" a fifth voice asked softly.

Instantly, the rest of the room's occupants went silent, and they (barring Tammy) shared brief, surprised looks before turning their focus on the girl hidden behind the leatherbound book. When she lowered it to let the massive book sit across her lap, her thin, delicate face was finally visible, framed by the shock of white, fluffy hair that sat on her head at barely chin-length. Her enormous, round eyes were a faint tint of pink- and where Tammy was fair skinned, this girl was practically ivory. "...From my book," she said gently.

"You said earlier that your book was… about myths, is that right?" Nato asked curiously as one of the girl's small hands ran across the weathered pages. "Then you'd be telling us a myth?"

"That's right…" Alvina smiled broadly. "This book is from Hyrule."

Nato's eyes widened. "From…?"

Cricket frowned. "Huh? Hyrule? Isn't that the one from those video games? The one thing, you know. The kingdom. Hyrule is the kingdom."

"What games?" Tammy sat up, her comic book falling into her lap, and frowned at Cricket.

"It's a series," Cherry answered, even though the question had been posed at the red-headed girl. " _The Legend of Zelda._ You play as this blonde guy who wears green named Link, and you try to save Princess Zelda."

" _Usually,_ " Cricket corrected- Tammy and Nato's gazes shot back to her after Cherry's original explanation. "Sometimes you're trying to save other people instead. It's a fun game. Alvina's got a whole book of myths about the games or something."

"About the kingdom," Alvina corrected. "About legends and prophecies, and the people in them."

"But it's a game…?" Cherry's eyebrows rose. "Is it a lore book? Or are you saying- you're saying you believe it's a real country?"

"Of course it's real." Alvina tilted her head slightly at Cherry. "Most fiction has a basis in myth. And all myth has a basis in truth… the kingdom of Hyrule is no different."

The tall girl nodded slowly in response, appearing to take everything in.

"I believe that." Nato spoke up, reaching out with one hand to close his textbook. He shifted on his bed so as to turn his full attention to Alvina. "I don't think this world- universe, maybe- is so limited that a kingdom like that wouldn't exist. Tell us a story, Alvina."

Alvina smiled gently and, lowering her head to the pages, began to read aloud.

 _In a sanctuary deep in the woods, there is said to be a holy, mythical sword._

 _This sword is said to give incredible power to they who draw it from its pedestal- the Chosen One of the Four Sword. They who are chosen of the goddesses are granted the power of Four. They are given the strength of four people with the soul of one… and with that power, it is said darkness cannot stand against their light. The Sword rests, when it has no owner, in its pedestal in its own holy sanctuary._

 _The creator of the sword is unknown, but they are said to be a powerful divine entity that watches over the wielder of the Four Sword, protecting them from harm. The Holy Guardian of the Four Sword provides the Four Sword hero with as much aid as possible without direct interference. So, too, have there been lesser Guardians of the Four Sword- for where there are Heroes, there are, too, mortal Guardians, appointed by the Holy Guardian to guide them through their journey. Whether these Guardians watch from afar, or they step in directly… they always watch over the Hero._

 _And so too will evil always be sealed within the sword's pedestal… making drawing the sword a blessing, and a curse..._

"But what if you had no choice?" Cricket asked aloud, frowning. "What if there was. Like. Another evil and you had to pull the sword to fight it and you got the other evil thing free. That's _two_ evil things to fight. I mean that's what happened in Four Sword Adventures."

Tammy shrugged, looking over at the redhead. "Then you're screwed, I guess. ...I dunno, does it say anything, Al?"

Alvina shook her head as she scanned the page. "No… not about that."

"But imagine being there to _see_ all this stuff happen," Cricket continued eagerly as she stood up from her bed. She crossed to Alvina's bed and sat down at the end. "OR. Or. Imagine being- whassit called again, Alvie. A Guardian. Cherry, what do you think?"

Cherry shrugged noncommittally. "...Yeah… it'd be pretty cool. If I had to do it, I mean. I wouldn't just go running into something like that. I have a busy life."

"There's a prophecy here," Alvina said suddenly, her eyes not leaving the page. "It's interesting…"

"Let's hear it, then, if you don't mind." Nato had been sitting quietly and listening up until this point- but now, he appeared far more interested.

Alvina's finger trailed across the text as she softly spoke the prophecy aloud- and somehow, miraculously, no one spoke. No one cut in. The prophecy went from beginning to end, uninterrupted, as she read.

" _When Four is drawn, evil's claim stayed, a battle started is yet won. A kingdom in peril will Guardians save- past six years' pain reign faith and love. The One becomes Four- then Four for nevermore._ "

Nato's eyes lit up, and he put a hand to his chin, looking up thoughtfully as he contemplated the prophecy. "Some of it is clear," he mused. "Some of it isn't. But the clear parts are what we already knew."

"Right." Tammy glanced over at him. "Someone's gonna draw the sword, shit's gonna go down, and those Guardian guys will do something to help. The myth kinda already says that."

Cricket pushed her hands into her cheeks and attempted to frown while doing a guppy face. "I don't get the six years thing," she mumbled past her pressed-together lips.

Cherry finally sighed and closed her book, placing her half-eaten candy bar on top of it to keep the front cover pressed into its pages. "Well… I mean, it's a cool-sounding prophecy."

She shifted into a sitting position, rubbed her eyes, and finally looked up to find the other four occupants of the room were staring at her expectantly. Her brown eyes darted around the room- and finally, she sighed.

"Okay," she said. "I'm not a prophecy-interpreter or a genius, but I'm gonna try. It sounds like when this hero guy pulls the sword, he's gonna start a war. A _big_ war. Even if he does defeat the evil he's trying to take down when he pulls the thing."

"Wow," Cricket murmured, her gaze growing distant. "...Imagine being in that war, guys… imagine fighting a war like that… saving lives…"

"Shit, I'd be game." Tammy shrugged carelessly.

"Then it's settled." Cricket stood up on Alvina's bed and pointed dramatically to the ceiling. "WE," she announced, a blinding grin spreading across her round face, "are gonna go to Hyrule!"

If Cricket had expected wild applause at this gesture, she did not receive it. Cherry's eyebrows rose; Nato blinked, apparently taken aback. Tammy just looked at her blankly. Alvina smiled broadly, her eyes lighting up again.

"I think that's a wonderful idea." Alvina gently closed her book of myths. "I'd… I would love to go to a place like Hyrule… see its sights… Cricket, if we could get there…"

"Then we get there." Cricket grinned broadly. "It'll be just like Four Sword Adventures. Except I have someone else to play it with. And we're not playing. It'll be really really cool. ...Anyone else in?"

Tammy slid off her bed and crossed to Alvina's, right across from hers- she sat on the very edge of the bed. "I mean, it'd probably be more fun to go to a place and see stuff than stay in this place."

"Alright, alright, I'm gonna be dragged into this anyway." Cherry held up her hands and walked toward the rest of the group. "But let's not do anything… you know, stupid. Okay?"

Nato, silently and without comment, got up from his bed and walked toward Alvina's.

"Sorry, Cherry." Tammy nonchalantly lifted her chin. "Stupid is my middle name. Actually, no, I take that back. Stupid is my first middle name, followed by Gorgeous."

"Wooooo, that's the ticket!" Cricket clapped eagerly as the small party gathered around Alvina's bed. "We're all goin' to Hyrule now! Hyrule's gonna be fun! Tickets, get your tickets here, choo choo here comes the FUN train! …But here's the question now." She flopped down into a seated position on Alvina's mattress, and leaned forward conspiratorially. "How do we get from A to B?"

Tammy raised her hands slowly. "Dude this is super crazy but like what if. What if we like… held hands and closed our eyes and _wished_ to go there."

Cherry pressed a hand to her forehead, giving the faux-serious Tammy a dull look. "Oh sure," she said, with feigned delight mere moments later. "After all, what else do we do? Act like we're chosen heroes and read the myth book some more, hoping it'll suck us inside, because _Hyrule needs our help_?"

Alvina delicately shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe there's always some greater evil out there…"

"There _always_ is," Cricket said impatiently. "So, are we gonna do this or not?"

And she held out her hands. Cherry rolled her eyes, but finally gave a resigned sort of smile and reached out to clasp Cricket's hand, looking around the rest of the circle with amusement. "...Okay, so how about it?"

"Ah," Alvina said softly. "You know…"

"Huh?" Cherry glanced at her.

"...Shouldn't you get dressed?" the albino girl suggested gently, lifting a hand in reason as she looked from Tammy to Cherry. "If we did get sent into Hyrule, you'd both be in sleep clothes. You'd be stranded out in the kingdom with nothing else to wear…"

Tammy glanced down at herself. "...It's not like I ever wear anything but T-shirts and shorts anyway."

"You're not wearing a bra," Cricket suggested.

"Oh, yeah." Tammy clapped a hand to her forehead. "You're right. Lemme just go strap my _scandalous_ _triple As_ down and we can be on our way."

"Cricket, seriously." Cherry rolled her eyes and extended her hand to the small albino girl. "You need to chill. We don't even know if this is gonna work."

"For the record," Tammy pointed out casually as she reached out to take Alvina's other hand, "I'm damn sure this is probably not gonna work."

Nato shrugged as he connected the bridge between Cricket and Tammy's spare hands, and Tammy suddenly shuddered. "Nato, your hands are freezing."

"Oh." Nato looked uncomfortable. "Sorry."

"Whatever, it's cool. ... _Damn_ that was a pun."

"Forget the puns!" Cricket declared. "Everybody ready? Close your eyes- and wish really really hard!"

The whole party screwed their eyes shut, hands in each others' as they focused on the wish in their own manner. Cricket, for one, squeezed Nato and Cherry's hands as she wished hard, desperate, hoping beyond hope that their wish would be heard. The exact antithesis of her were Cherry and Tammy- Cherry appeared calm, but she slouched casually and didn't seem to expect anything to happen. Tammy could have been asleep for all her excitement. Nato and Alvina were in a state of meditative calm, though Nato could be seen biting his lip and wincing, his hand crushed in Cricket's vice grip.

The group of five made their wish.

...It was hard to say who noticed it first, but Cricket's vice grip suddenly loosened- and it was apparent why. The mattress beneath them suddenly seemed to feel faintly like grass. In fact, the sensation grew stronger until it did, entirely, feel like grass. Cricket's grip loosened, but Nato, Tammy and Cherry's grips all suddenly tightened.

It was hard to say, too, whose eyes opened first, but when everyone dared to squint their eyes open at their surroundings, Cricket's loud, delighted gasp confirmed the worst fears- and the dear hopes- of the others.

It was sunset instead of just past dusk, and the cloudless sky above them was stained a deep orange that faded up into pale, dusty blue. The grass was unmoving- there wasn't a strong breeze- but it was green and littered the ground save for a nearby dirt path. Trees were to Alvina and Tammy's backs; a waterfall was at Cricket and Nato's backs, some distance away, a rainbow reflecting in the water as it cascaded fiercely down a cliff.

Wherever they were- they were not in their cabin.

" _We made it!_ " Cricket gasped delightedly, hopping up to her feet and looking around wildly. "We're actually here! We got here! _It worked!_ " She continued squealing happily as Cherry gawked up at her, her chin tucked and her eyebrows risen high as she gaped soundlessly. Tammy was in a similar state, her eyes wide, but she looked around their surroundings instead. Alvina rose to her feet with a delighted, dazzling smile on her face; Nato's eyes were wide, but the rest of him was slack.

"It's beautiful," Alvina whispered, gazing past them at the rushing waterfall. "It's so beautiful here…"

Tammy made a faint gurgling noise.

"Hold it!" Cherry shouted suddenly, leaping to her feet next. "How'd we get here?! You don't just get places because you close your eyes and _wish_ to go. That's ridiculous, it- it makes _no_ sense. I…" Her voice seemed to die in her throat as she lifted her hands helplessly. "...I don't get it."

"We really made it?" Tammy croaked, barely above a whisper.

"It seems that way." Nato rose to his feet and brushed himself off, then bowed slightly as he offered a hand to Tammy. The tiny dark-haired girl took his hand without comment and staggered as she got to her feet last out of all of them. "...I'll admit, I doubted," Nato said seriously, putting a hand to his chest and lifting his chin. "But it seems my doubts were… unnecessary. Tammy, your idea was excellent."

"My ideas are all terrible," Tammy said at once, aghast. "Don't listen to me. Oh, God, if it gets us into these situations _please_ never listen to me again."

"Guys, hang on- stop." Cherry raked a hand through her hair. "Let's regroup."

"Right!" Cricket clapped her hands together a couple of times, grinning. "We're in Hyrule. It's sundown. We have no idea where we are. Tammy and Cherry are both in pajamas. Am I missing anything."

"We have no supplies, no sense of direction, and no known way of getting back home other than-" Nato began, counting off on his fingers, only to be interrupted.

"Closing our eyes and wishing really hard!" Tammy clapped her hands to either side of her head, then clenched them into fists at her sides and screwed her eyes shut. She bobbed up and down anxiously as she, presumably, wished desperately to get home- but, even as the rest of the party watched, that was all she did. Eventually, one purple eye cracked open, and she sagged when she realized her surroundings hadn't changed.

"Tammy," Cricket said curiously, "I thought you said you were okay with this."

"That was when I thought it was a _joke!_ " Tammy said in a strangled voice, whirling on Cricket. "Holy shit, Cricket, I was kidding, I wouldn't last a _day_ out here! We'll all be lucky if we don't die of starvation, because like _Nato_ said-"

"Tammy, calm down _,_ " Cherry said firmly. "We didn't finish the recap."

"The hell else is there to say?!" Tammy threw up her hands.

Nato shrugged. "We can't go anywhere without a map or a compass, or some sense of direction," he concluded. "There's a dirt path here-" he gestured to it- "but we don't have any idea which way will lead to a town. ...Does anyone have a map, then?"

"How about a guide?" Cricket suggested.

Cherry's eyebrows rose as she turned to the red-headed girl. "And where are you gonna find a _guide_ at?"

Cricket pointed helpfully to the dirt path, and all at once, the other four turned their heads into the trees where she pointed. In the complete silence, they could hear footsteps light on the dirt- Cherry's eyes narrowed, Nato tensed, Tammy shrank back and Alvina appeared unfazed- and then, quite suddenly, a figure in a red tunic pushed through the bushes. Blonde hair fell in a fringe over his face; startlingly blue eyes blinked in astonishment when they fell upon the party of five.

"Oh," the boy said aloud. "I didn't think we'd see anyone _else_ in these woods."

He didn't appear to be any harm to them; in fact, he was probably around twelve years old, just as they were, but he was undoubtedly a Hyrule native. His ears were pointed and he wore a sword and shield over his back; on his head, he wore a long, pointed cap that trailed down at his back. As a matter of fact, when the party of five had taken in his appearance, Cricket's eyes lit up in recognition as Cherry blinked in surprise.

"Hi!" Cricket waved to the boy amiably. "Can you help us? We're a little lost. Well more than a little lost. We're looking for someone."

Cherry gave Cricket a confused look, but didn't say anything. The boy brightened.

"Sure!" he said cheerfully- he seemed friendly enough, that was for certain- and started to walk toward them. "Who're you looking for? Or where are you trying to go?"

"Well, we're looking for a town," Cherry began slowly. "We're not really sure where we are…"

Cricket puffed up importantly and lifted her chin, putting her hands on her hips. "And," she said, in a very serious voice, " _we_ are looking for the Four Sword Heroes."

Tammy and Cherry's eyes widened, but the boy didn't even seem to notice; he suddenly grinned at them as if completely delighted by the questions. "Oh, I can help you with both of those!" he said eagerly. "But, um… what're you lookin' for the heroes for?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Nato spoke seriously now, stepping forward and delicately batting Cherry backward with one arm. "We're the Guardians of the Four Sword."

The boy's eyes widened. "You're… what? Um- I'll be right back, okay?"

And, casting them a wide-eyed stare, he turned heel and ran back into the bushes.

Tammy stepped out of their group to give Cricket a bewildered look. "We're _what?_ " she demanded.

"Cricket, what were you _thinking_?" Cherry asked incredulously, albeit while trying to keep her voice low. "And _Nato,_ you too? That boy-"

"-is Link," Cricket whispered back, frowning at the other girl. "He's the hero."

"I _know,_ but-"

" _Cherry, listen._ " Nato spoke quietly, but his expression was firm. "Everything happens for a reason. You're right- no one just travels to another country because they close their eyes and wish for it. This must have happened because it was _meant_ to happen, and the only reasoning for it I can think of is…" He took a breath. "...is that the five of us are the Guardians."

Cherry glared at him.

"...I _really_ hate that you could be right," she muttered.

"0-1 Nato," Cricket said cheerfully. "Does anyone else agree?"

Tammy raised a hand helplessly. "If being a Guardian means I'll get out of this alive, I am okay with that."

"Nato's right," Alvina murmured. "...Everything happens for a reason. There is no such thing as coincidence."

It was probably very lucky (or fate?) that they finished discussing this just as the bushes rustled again, and the boy in the red tunic stepped out into the open. Even though two of them were expecting it, to everyone's amazement, he was followed by an identical boy in green, and after him, two more in blue and purple. The party of five exchanged glances- at the same time, so did the four boys.

The worlds of the Heroes and the Guardians had finally collided.

After a pause, the boy in purple stepped forward, past his lookalikes. "...You say you're the Four Sword Guardians." His voice was calm and measured; his expression did not give away anything going on in his mind. "Do you have any proof?"

" _Proof?_ " Cricket frowned. "What, we have to, like… prove who we are to you? How're we supposed to do that?"

The purple clothed boy shrugged. "That's your problem, not ours."

"Well, for one thing, you don't have to act like we're an ambush," Cherry said bluntly- as if on instinct, she had stepped out in front of the rest of the group. The way she planted her feet and folded her arms made her look like some cross between a cat ruffling up its fur and a mother bear. "We're here to _help_ you."

"Yeah, 'cause-" The boy in blue shouldered past the boy in purple and glared at the other group. "It's _so_ easy to believe you just because you say so."

"That's interesting." The purple-clad boy glanced at his counterpart. "I didn't think you'd agree with me."

It wasn't his words; the way he _said_ it made it apparent to everyone in the forest that there was a hidden meaning behind them. Cricket, Nato and Tammy exchanged worried glances as the blue-clad boy glared back at the other. "Oh yeah?"

"Yes, but I think we can argue semantics later," the other boy said simply.

"No, go ahead." The one in blue leered. "Why're you surprised?"

The green-clad boy, standing behind the other two, groaned. "Guys, please, not now…"

The purple clothed one shrugged again. "Well, judging by the few hours I've known you, you seem volatile and completely incapable of reason, so I figured-"

"Oh _God_ ," Tammy muttered as the other boy grabbed the purple-clad one by the collar, yelling obscenities, and their green and red companions jumped in to try and separate them. "You know that _Hyrule needs our help_ thing you said earlier, Cherry? I know you were being sarcastic, but they're a mess."

Cherry sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of her nose; Nato averted his gaze, as if uncomfortable or ashamed of the display.

"Hellooooo?" Cricket called out to them anxiously. "We're still here!"

" _When Four is drawn, evil's claim stayed-"_ Alvina's voice was soft, but was the perfect pitch to pierce the cacophony going on across the dirt path. " _A battle started is yet won. A kingdom in peril will Guardians save- past six years' pain reign faith and love. The One becomes Four- then Four for nevermore."_

The effect of Alvina's words (and Alvina in general) caused the four heroes to instantly cease their fighting and turn their heads. The blue-clad boy let go of his counterpart's collar as he turned; he and the other two exchanged wide-eyed glances, but the purple clothed one barely brushed himself off before fixing his gaze on Alvina.

"...You know the prophecy." His voice was quiet.

Alvina nodded softly. "...Yes."

"That's impossible," the boy in green said aloud. "The only person who told us about the Four Sword prophecy was…"

The four of them suddenly looked troubled, but he continued. "...Princess Zelda. She said it came to her in a dream… She should've been the _only_ person to know the prophecy, she said herself she hadn't told anyone else."

"And yet, here we are." Nato lifted his chin. "If she was supposed to be the only one who knew the prophecy, why do we know it as well if we _aren't_ the Four Sword Guardians?"

There was a heavy silence.

It was unceremoniously broken by the boy in red rushing forward, cheering in delight as he crossed the great divide to stand with the other group of twelve year olds. "You _are_ the Guardians! Wow, I didn't think we'd _ever_ get to meet the Four Sword Guardians, but-"

"But you're the heroes." Tammy cracked a smile. "Of course you're gonna meet us."

"I didn't think we'd meet the _heroes!_ " Cricket said eagerly, putting out a hand, which the boy shook with an equally eager grin. "I'm Cricket, what's your name?"

"Link! ...Well-" The boy glanced sheepishly back at the other three boys- the two boys in blue and purple glared at him, while the one in green frowned visibly. "I guess we're _all_ Link."

"Right." Cherry nodded slowly. "You're the same person, but split into four parts…"

"We can't _all_ be Link, though," he continued, turning back to face the other three as they ventured closer. "How about…" His face lit up. "Nicknames! See, I wear red clothes, right? So I'll be Red." He pointed at his blue clothed lookalike. "You're Blue."

"What?!" the newly christened Blue demanded.

Red turned to the purple clothed boy and opened his mouth- but before he could say a word, the other boy's eyebrows rose as if daring him to say what they all expected. Red's mouth slowly closed into an extremely sheepish grin. The air was thick with discomfort. Cricket clapped her hands over her mouth to muffle her giggling.

"...So, how about that Purple, yeah?" Tammy clapped her hands together, wearing a shit-eating grin. "What a guy. Can't wait to travel with you, Purple, ol' buddy."

The boy in purple glared silently at her.

Red giggled. "No, Purple's not gonna work. Maybe a different kind of purple."

"Lavender." Tammy was still grinning.

"Mauve," Nato supplied helpfully. He averted his gaze when the obviously disapproving boy turned his leer on him.

" _Orchid,_ " Cricket whispered from behind her fingers, and finally broke down shaking with hysterical laughter.

Cherry sighed. "...Plum. I know, it's a no. That's the only purple I've got, sorry."

"Violet," Alvina suggested.

Red clapped his hands together and gestured to Alvina excitedly. "That's it! Violet! Violet's a name!"

The boy's forehead creased. "Isn't it technically a girl's name, though?"

"I dunno," Blue said aloud- he was looking at the newly named Violet and grinning much like Tammy was. "I kinda liked Orchid."

The other boy raised his eyes to the heavens as if asking for patience, or perhaps to be struck down on the spot so as to have mercy from these buffoons.

"How about we shorten it?" Red offered, raising his hands helpfully. "Vio. Is that any better?"

The boy hesitated, then finally gave a tentative nod- apparently the name Vio satisfied him enough.

"And Green!" Red grinned and turned to the final unnamed member of their group. "What d'you think? Good, right?"

"I guess…" The boy now named Green rubbed the back of his neck. "Feels kinda weird, though."

"Well, _you_ guys can use your silly nicknames," Blue declared. The rest of the group turned to watch him as he stomped over to a nearby rock, put one foot up on it, and posed dramatically, as if pronouncing himself the president, or maybe a team captain in a game of dodgeball. " _I'm_ Link, you got it? I'm the _main_ Link, so that's what you're gonna call me!"

"Okay." Tammy pulled a poker face. "Cerulean."

Cricket choked out a laugh. The side of Cherry's mouth twitched in amusement.

" _No,_ " Blue snapped, all glory lost as he took his foot back down. "It's _Link_! Look, if you're gonna be annoying to him-" He gestured to Vio, who scowled instantly. "-then go right ahead, but-"

"-but if you're gonna be an ass, I'm not holding back." Tammy held up her hands defensively. "Sorry, I don't make the rules."

Blue opened his mouth to snap something back, but Green cut across him. "You can't just put yourself above all of us by calling yourself the _main_ Link," he snapped.

The party of Guardians seemed to almost sigh in relief at a voice of reason.

"Besides!" Green jabbed a thumb at himself, glaring at Blue. "Everyone knows Link wears _green!_ If anyone's the main Link, it's me!"

The group of five- minus Alvina, who raised her eyebrows- collectively groaned. Green looked over at them, blinking. "...What'd I say?" he asked tentatively. "Look, that was just- I wasn't being serious!"

The next moment he was yelling in shock as he had to whip out his sword, sheath and all, to block a blow from Blue, who had charged at him in fury. " _You think you're better than me 'cause you wear green?!_ " Blue shouted, his face twisted with rage. "FINE! Then we're switching tunics, _now! And hats, too!_ "

Cricket gasped in shock. "You can't _do_ that!"

"Dude, holy shit, stop!" Tammy looked alarmed. "You could've killed him!"

"He couldn't have." Vio watched as Green shoved him away with a grunt, sending the other sliding across the dirt on his feet. "We're all well aware of our instincts as sword fighters. Green blocking was practically second nature, and as bull-headed as he is-"

" _Quiet over there, pretty boy!_ " Blue roared in the distance.

"-Blue knew he'd block the blow." Vio shrugged. "It's nothing really to worry about."

"But…" Red glanced at Vio curiously. "If we're all the same person, why are the four of us so different?"

Vio hummed, a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth; he seemed to be enjoying himself now. "Because the four of us are all just a part of my- ah, of Link's personality. The original Link carried pieces of all four of us, but now that we're separated, we're all a singular part of the whole. Green is focused and motivated, Blue is hot-headed and aggressive, to put it lightly-"

Blue whipped around and glared at Vio. " _What?!_ "

"Red is innocent and optimistic," Vio continued without missing a beat, turning to Red.

"Oh!" Red brightened. "I see! So that means _Vio_ is super cool, right?" He grinned broadly.

Vio shrugged. "I'd prefer calm and collected," he said simply.

"You're not denying it," Nato pointed out.

"No, I suppose not." Vio glanced around the other five. "It's your turn, then. We've introduced ourselves."

Cricket's hand shot into the air first, almost hitting Nato, who stepped away in alarm. "Me, me! I'm Cricket Roselock!" She grinned around at them all. "Uh, what do I say? I'm twelve years old and I love singing, my favorite color's pink, I'm gonna be rich and famous someday, star sign is-"

"Whoa, whoa, enough!" Cherry raised her hands and motioned for Cricket to stop. The redhead fell silent, but her enthusiasm was still there on her face. Cherry took a breath and turned back to the others. "I'm Cherry Leroy, just Cherry is fine. Sorry about them, they're kinda an… eccentric group."

"You say that like you're not a part of the group." Cricket frowned at her.

"It's okay, I get it." Green nodded.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Blue demanded at once, turning on him. Green groaned out a sound of sheer and complete regret.

"Green isn't alone." Vio smiled calmly. "I understand completely."

Blue whipped around, but Tammy was already pushing her way forward. "Name's Tamiko White," she announced. "Yeah, I know, kind of a weird sounding first and last name to put together. I go by Tammy. For the record, if you're an ass, I will kick _you._ Not your ass, you're already an ass. I can kick anywhere I like, an ass can't have another ass."

"A pregnant ass can have an ass," Cricket said helpfully.

"A pregnant ass has _two_ asses, and is also an ass," Tammy agreed. "Which makes it assception, just so we're clear. That aside, you get it. I'm in the business of ass and the kicking of. Exit, stage left, Nato enters the scene."

"Thank you, Tammy." Nato bowed, perhaps a little overdramatically for someone whose opening act had been an anecdote about asses. Green and Vio now wore expressions that could only be described as 'concerned'. "My name is Fortunato, but my friends call me Nato. You're more than welcome to do the same."

"I thought that name was pronounced 'For-choo-NAY-tow,'" Red said curiously.

"No, no, no." Nato shook his head. "It isn't NAY, it's NAH. NAH-tow. Common misconception, I understand." He smiled calmly. "I'm sure we'll get along, provided none of us have any fights. I take my friends very seriously."

"I can't guarantee there won't be some fighting." Vio's pointed stare briefly fell on Tammy, then on Blue. Thankfully, neither of them noticed. "But I'm sure we all agree."

"Are you _sure?_ " Cherry's eyebrows rose. "You've been picking fights since we _got_ here."

"He had every right not to trust we were the Guardians." Alvina took a few delicate steps forward, then bowed formally; her pale yellow sundress rustled about her knees. "Alvina Ansgar." She straightened up and smiled quietly. "It's wonderful to meet you all."

Vio barely lowered his head, both in greeting and as if he were slightly mollified by someone saying he'd been right. Cherry made a face.

Green smiled awkwardly. "I'd like to say the same, but… I wish it didn't have to be like this, y'know? I mean, our princess just got kidnapped, and we have to go-" His eyes widened in horrified realization. "We have to _go!_ Oh, shoot, we have to get to Hyrule Castle and warn our father!"

"We found the path," Red pointed out quickly. "We'll get back faster now, right?"

"It cuts off some time, but it's still going to be a good half hour before we're back at the castle town," Vio warned. "Another twenty minutes to cross town to get to the castle itself."

"Wait, what's happening?" Cherry asked at once. "Your princess was kidnapped, and-"

"Guys, look," Blue cut in sharply, pointing. "Isn't that the castle cook?"

The heroes turned in surprise; the others followed suit, looking out toward the distant hills that sprawled out past the forest. It was plain to see why the woman they were looking at was distinguishable from a distance- though she seemed an average middle-aged woman, wearing a simple dress and modest apron, her hair was bright red, and so was the hair of the tiny girl she was hauling over the hill.

"It is!" Red gasped immediately. "It's Arcy!"

Green cupped his hands around his mouth. " _Hey, Arcy!_ " He started off running toward her, the other two hot on his heels.

"No, you idiots!" Vio shouted after them. "Not all at once! No one else knows we-" He furiously raked a hand through his fringe, then gave up and ran right after them.

Cherry watched them run down the path for a few moments, then turned back to the rest of her own group of friends. "Well, that's it," she said aloud. "We're definitely stuck in this mess."

"We _have_ been," Nato said seriously. "If I'm right, and we were brought here because we _are_ the Guardians-"

Tammy raised a hand. "I'm still totally open to the 'mass hallucination' explanation."

"-then this whole thing may have been preordained by a higher power, and we've never been able to do anything about it," Nato finished, putting a hand on Tammy's shoulder. Tammy brushed his hand off, looking disturbed.

"Dude, holy hell, seriously, your hands are _cold._ ...Alvina, did the book say anything else about the Guardians? Anything more helpful than 'you're gonna stop a war, have fun'?"

Alvina shook her head. "No… it went on to tell the tales of the Four Sword wielders throughout its history. But Nato is right… if the prophecy has been around long enough to have it in a book of myths, our fates must have been decided a long time ago…"

"Who _cares?_ " Cricket puffed herself up. "All we gotta do now is stick to the heroes like glue, right? 'Cause glue is the way we need to do this. 'f it's not glue, not gonna work."

"It'd also be great to get some information." Cherry glanced down at herself. "And some clothes." She cast Alvina a wary glance.

Alvina just shrugged. "I don't plan on saying 'I told you so'..." She smiled slightly. "Maybe someone else could, if you'd like…?"

"No, I'm really oka-"

" _She told you so!_ " Cricket blurted out at once.

" _Hey, you guys!"_ Green's voice called urgently from far off in the distance. " _Come quick! Something- something really bad happened at Hyrule Castle!_ "

The Guardians exchanged worried looks.

"Should we be worrying around now that none of us really know how to fight?" Cherry muttered.

"Kick them," Cricket ordered. "I mean kick anyone who tries to get us. You dance. Strong legs. Kick them."

"We are ALL going to die," Tammy announced. "Thanks for playing. Put 'she saw the whole thing coming' on my gravestone if any of you are still around." She paused. "Wait, what's the message on the gravestone called again?"

"An epitaph," Nato supplied. "None of us are going to die, Tammy."

"Yeah, well-"

" _Are you coming with us or not?!_ " came the roar of Blue's voice from the hills.

* * *

Cherry and Tammy hadn't taken the concept seriously. Nato had been curious. Cricket and Alvina- overeager. Either way, one thing was fairly obvious: at _least_ three out of five of the Guardians had underestimated exactly what they were getting into.

Hyrule Castle Town was barely hanging on; most people had escaped already, survived the terrible ruin that had settled itself upon the kingdom's capital. Houses still smoked slightly, partially burnt, while others sat lonely and charred, practically burned to the ground. The sky was getting dark as dusk, clouds and smoke gathered. The people who hadn't yet escaped weren't visible on the streets, but they were there. The group of nine could feel their stares from the shadows.

Hyrule Castle itself was an entirely different horror story. Or perhaps it was the same horror story, amplified tenfold.

"I don't believe this…" Green's voice echoed miserably through the lifeless, charred courtyard. "The castle, and the town… all this in _one day?_ "

As if in answer, a breeze whistled ominously through the blackened trees and stone- as the entire party passed through and stopped at a door. All of them had agreed that going in through the front door would be ridiculously stupid (Nato and Vio in particular had both been aghast at the very notion), and instead, they were entering through the kitchen. Thankfully, Arcy had given them the key. Though it helped their plan, it hadn't helped their spirits as they forced themselves to look about the ruined castle.

Finally, a tightly clenched pair of fists slammed down on a pillar- accompanying Blue's outraged cry of " _No!_ "

Blue's voice- a chorus of "no, no, no"s all around them- echoed loudly into the distance.

" _Shhhhhh!_ " Vio hissed quietly, glaring at Blue. "Arcy said there were monsters still in here."

"Hey, um… you guys." Green glanced around- not at his fellow heroes, but at the Guardians. "Listen… now would be a _really_ good time to tell us if you can fight. None of you have weapons… heck, three of you aren't wearing _shoes_."

Cherry and Tammy both looked down at their bare feet.

"Yeah, uh… coming here was kinda short notice," Tammy muttered. "I mean _really_ short notice."

"I don't wear shoes." Alvina smiled dimly.

"I have a few tricks." Cherry met Green's gaze as Blue, Vio and Red stared at Alvina blankly in the background. "If you can find me a sword, I can fight."

"I think there're some display swords on the walls," Red said helpfully, looking over.

"So, one sword fighter." Green glanced back around the group of Guardians, barring Cherry- his hand twitched at a pocket in his tunic almost impatiently.

Cricket waved a hand in the air. "I can fight! ...Depending on what it is."

Tammy opened her mouth, but Alvina spoke up first. "We're alright. We should be fine."

Green nodded and turned back to the door immediately, drawing the key from his pocket. Tammy gave Alvina an incredulous look; Alvina just barely shook her head in response.

The castle was too quiet.

"It's really quiet," Red's voice barely whispered, and even that seemed to reverberate through the stone halls of Hyrule Castle. "Are there really still monsters here?"

"Don't let your guard down." Blue looked and sounded tense; his eyes darted around as they ventured down a hallway. His sword was already drawn and held tight in both hands. "...They're in here somewhere."

"...I have a bad feeling about this." Cherry spoke in a low voice. "Listen, I don't think we should be here. I think we should get out while we still can."

 _CLANG._

The unmistakable sound of iron on stone sounded from somewhere behind them, echoing horribly through the hallway. Everyone's heads turned backward in horror as the sound approached- and magnified, as if far more than just one pair of iron boots were heading straight for them. No one even needed to speak; as soon as realization hit, they all started running for the exit at the end of the hall.

The instant they hurtled out into the next room- some kind of foyer, judging by its size- the three heroes who hadn't drawn their swords did so as the whole party shot up against the wall. The clanging of armor only grew closer and closer. The four heroes, Cherry, Cricket and Nato were tensed up in preparation to fight; Tammy just hid behind Alvina in terror.

The clanging of armor suddenly stopped.

And then, it burst out again all at once as their attackers were upon them.

The four heroes managed to stick together in one group, but they and the Guardians were quickly separated from each other. The suits of armor attacked relentlessly- the heroes shouted and sliced their swords, but it was clear they were being overwhelmed.

" _Are you guys doing okay?!_ " Green's voice yelled over the cacophony.

Cherry had finally found a sword on the wall and was currently in the process of jabbing it into a suit of armor. "Never better!" she shouted in response.

Nato looked tense as he held his arms out in front of Alvina and Tammy- the three of them were slowly being backed into a wall as several suits of armor approached. Tammy was hyperventilating; Alvina stared with relative calm out at the approaching enemy.

" _What're you doing, Green?!_ " Vio's voice demanded. " _Fight them or they'll cut you down!_ "

Some distance from Vio, Green stepped back, away from the suit of armor he had just blocked. "We can't!" he cried out in distress. "We _know_ these guys! We've trained together, ate together-"

He gasped when Blue shot in front of him to stab the suit of armor through the middle, then whirled around to grab him by the shirt collar.

"Well, they're enemies _now_!" Blue shouted at him. "So we have to fight!"

The brief pause was, unfortunately, bad for them- they were both forced to back up as more suits of armor approached, and they, Red, and Vio ended up pressing against the wall next to Nato, Alvina, and Tammy. Cricket practically ran to stand next to them; Cherry was the last to be pushed back, now with no sword and a cut on her right hand to show for it.

"Are you okay?" Red asked worriedly as Cherry quietly hissed in pain, clutching the wounded hand in her other hand.

"Don't worry about _me_ ," Cherry said grimly. "This is the _least_ of our troubles right now."

Or perhaps it wasn't- because no sooner had she said that than every last suit of armor in the room collapsed and dropped to the floor, slamming against the ground with a chorus of _CLANG_ ing noises- and quite suddenly, they disappeared into mere smoke and vapor, dark mist that briefly rose into the air before disappearing. Cherry's eyes widened- she glanced around the rest of the equally startled group. Alvina looked mildly surprised; even Tammy had been startled out of her terror, blinking in confusion at the place where the metal army had once stood.

"Your concern is pathetic," a voice said calmly, further back into the dark room. "They're just my toys. I'm _touched_ , though."

Everyone tensed as footsteps grew nearer to them; a black boot stepped out of the shadows, followed by another as a figure in a black tunic approached them. A familiar fringe, as dark as the shadows he had just stepped out of, hung over the boy's pale face, from which crimson eyes glowed malevolently. An equally familiar hat sat on his head- but the end seemed to have a mind of its own, swirling and twisting every which way. A sly smirk, simply too wicked to be allowed, was spread widely across his face.

One thing was for certain: the boy looked exactly like the four heroes that stood across from him.

"You're _late,_ " he drawled, stopping some distance from them. "I got tired of waiting."

"You!" Vio said sharply.

"Do you _know_ hi- I mean, aside from him looking just like you," Cherry said, bewildered, as she turned to the heroes. "Who is he?"

"I think a better question is, who're _you?_ " the boy asked lazily, pretending to examine his nails. He casually buffed them on his tunic as he peered out at the party. "Let's see… injured girl who I'm betting asks a _lot_ of dumb questions, overexcited red-head-"

"Ex _cuse_ me?" Cherry asked incredulously, as Cricket gasped loudly and slapped both hands over her mouth.

"Wow, 2-0 to me," the boy commented almost cheerfully. "I'm guessing wannabe hero who cuts his own hair, and you're… like, eight."

"And _you_ are an asshole," Tammy declared as Nato self-consciously touched his scruffy hair. "And I am _twelve._ "

The boy pointedly ignored her and turned his gaze on Alvina. "I don't even know where to begin with you."

Alvina lightly tipped her head to one side.

"All of you _plus_ four miserable heroes trying to save a doomed kingdom?" The boy smirked wickedly again. "I'm guessing… _Four Sword Guardians._ But it's kinda funny, if there are four heroes, why are there five of you?" He pretended to thoughtfully stroke his chin. "Sounds to me like one of you doesn't belong, know what I'm saying?"

The Guardians looked at each other in dismay, but Green stepped forward. "Enough!" he snapped. "Where's Princess Zelda?!"

"Ruin my fun, why don't you?" The boy shrugged. "What's it to you, anyway? It's not like her location will do you any good. Darkness will take over, and then she'll either die a hero or live long enough to…" He waved a hand lazily. "You know the saying."

"That's not true!" Green said fiercely. "And- and who are you, anyway?!"

"We've _been_ through this. Forgotten already?" The boy grinned. "I'm the hero, Link. I'm your living shadow from the Dark World. You might call me _Shadow Link_ , if you feel like, but we're getting off the _real_ topic here."

The boy- Shadow Link- took a step forward and lifted his chin. "Since either you or her-" he nodded casually at Cherry, who scowled- "is going to ask, I'll just tell you. The Wind Mage Vaati has been revived. Dark energy from him is being blown into this world- and when there's enough, the Dark World will replace yours as 'real' existence. At that point, Princess Zelda- if she hasn't been turned by then- will be offered up as a sacrifice to bring about eternal darkness."

"If you _get_ that far," Green retorted. "The Four Sword has enough power to _defeat_ you."

Shadow actually laughed; apparently, the concept of being defeated by the sword genuinely amused him. " _Ha!_ You'd like to think that, huh? You're a little too late… the sword's been tainted with darkness since you drew it from the pedestal. It can't do a thing against me now."

" _That's not true!_ " Blue shouted, and even though cries of "Blue, no!" followed him, he lunged at Shadow, sword in hand.

It happened so quickly that no one even really saw it: one moment, Blue was rushing at Shadow as the other lifted one hand, and then quite suddenly, he was not- instead, Blue was flying backward and skidding onto the ground, tunic smoking slightly and sword clattering to the floor beside him. Red and Alvina hurriedly crossed the room to help him- the other six looked on in horror as Shadow's hand smoked at the fingertips.

"Now do you get it?" Shadow grinned as he let his hand fall to his side.

Green glanced back at Blue, whom Red and Alvina were currently helping to his feet- and then took a deep, long breath. "Where are the rest of the people who were in the castle, then?" he asked firmly. "What did you do with the guards, the castle workers- and my father?"

Shadow put a hand to his chin thoughtfully. "Your father? Oh, right… I sent them _all_ to the Dark World as one big happy family."

"You didn't." Green spoke very quietly.

"Oh, but I did, that's the beauty of it!" Shadow spread his arms wide as he gave the party a massive, manic grin- one that showed off how his canines were actually more like fangs than anything. "In the end, he begged for his life, you know? Over, and over… 'Don't kill me, don't kill me, please, I'll do anything!'" he mocked aloud. "It was _pathetic._ "

This time, cries and protests followed Green as he lunged, incensed, at Shadow, with the clear intent to slice him in half. Shadow laughed wildly as his hand lifted-

There was a blast of black and white.

Everyone shielded their eyes from the smoke that covered the room afterward. For several moments, as the dust cleared, it was silent… Green's eyes were screwed shut as if he was sure he was dead, but carefully, he peered out… and his eyes flew open wide at what he saw.

No one had even seen him approach, but Nato stood with both feet planted in front of Green, hands lightly outstretched at his sides- his fingertips, much like Shadow's had done, streamed lightly with glittering mist. In front of them, where he had blocked Shadow's attack, was a pile of snow and slush that had spread across the floor. Shadow stood some distance away; he no longer looked amused.

"W-What?" Tammy stared out at the three of them, eyes wide. "Holy shit- Nato?"

"Is that… snow?" Vio asked slowly.

"I think…" Cherry answered cautiously.

"Wooooo, _Nato!_ " Cricket jumped up and down, clapping eagerly. "You've got _magic powers!_ That is so COOL, I want magic powers!"

"That's right… Slipped my mind for a minute, there." Shadow stared unamusedly at Nato, scratching his neck, as Nato gazed back at him levelly. "Four Sword _Guardians._ You do that whole 'guarding' thing for the chosen heroes." He shrugged. "I was a little hasty, I guess. My mistake."

"Green." Nato spoke lowly, still looking at Shadow. "You heard him. The sword isn't any use now. I'll take care of this."

"But-!" Green protested, taking a step backward.

"Green, give it up," Vio said sharply, taking a step forward. "He's right."

"He's _not!_ " Blue burst out furiously, picking up his sword off the ground. "It's just hard to get close enough to even touch him!" He glared at Shadow, lip curled in a snarl. "How about you make like a _real_ shadow and disappear, huh?!"

Shadow's eyes widened. Apparently, that had been entirely the wrong thing to say.

In the next moment, Nato was lunging out to block another shockwave with a wall of ice as Shadow turned his attention on Blue instead. " _Don't you EVER mock the shadows!_ " the boy roared. Dark energy swirled wildly around his body- it was like every inch of him, every fiber, was twisted with fury, distorted by the evil powers that he was channeling through him. " _Do you understand what kind of power you're dealing with?!_ " Crimson eyes blazed, shifting to burn holes in Nato's fearful, pale blue eyes. " _I'll SHOW you!_ "

"Blue!" Cherry shouted angrily. "You just made it worse!"

"Nice job _breaking_ it, hero!" Tammy choked out, whipping around to face Blue.

"He can fight _me_ , if he wants!" Blue yelled, pointing his sword out at the seething shadow boy. "I'll cut him down!"

" _You can't, you idiot!"_ Tammy screamed. " _We're all gonna die!_ "

" _Can we please stop yelling?!_ " Cricket shrieked.

It all seemed hopeless as Nato lifted his hands, preparing for the worst- even he seemed to be aware that his power was no match for Shadow's, but the way he lifted his chin and stood tall seemed to say he was proud to die. The mist poured from his hands as malevolent energy blazed out from Shadow's fingertips, and the dark Link lifted his hands with a roar- and then, a miracle occurred.

Or rather, the light at the end of the tunnel appeared- or maybe just a light appeared, because Shadow's eyes widened in horror as a single glowing ball appeared in his face. He screamed and staggered backward, covering his face. " _Aaaaaah! Stop it!_ " he screamed, cowering. " _Get away from me!_ "

The glowing ball (a fairy?) floated quickly toward the party, whirled around in a circle a couple of times, and everything went white.

" _Four Sword Heroes… can you hear me?_ "

Green's eyes fluttered open first, and he gasped to find that they were no longer in the castle with Shadow Link; just as he was, the other three Links and the five Guardians stood around the large room. One by one, they blinked their eyes open and looked about, puzzled over their whereabouts. Nato exhaled deeply, his body relaxing in sheer relief. Tammy almost literally fell over and had to be caught by Alvina.

"The Blue Maiden," Vio said at once- he was the first to really react, after their sudden rescue, to the large crystal that floated in the middle of the room. "She's trapped in that crystal." He glanced around the large stone room again. "We're under the castle, aren't we? Did you save us?"

If one peered closely into the crystal, the young blue-clad woman was barely visible, her hands still clasped together in prayer. She smiled faintly in reply. " _I sent a fairy to help you. Link, listen… something terrible has happened._ "

The four Links scrambled to venture closer to the maiden as to better hear what she had to say. " _Darkness covers Hyrule as it did in legend,_ " she continued gravely when they approached. " _A phantom hero, the one you just encountered, has trapped myself and the other maidens and scattered us. He is 'Shadow Link', a reflection of you created in the depths of the Dark World, but he is far stronger than any mere shadow… And he grows stronger all the time. It took all my strength to even send one fairy to help you. You must defeat him before his power reaches its peak."_

Red sighed miserably. "We can't even defeat him _now._ How do we defeat him when he's always getting stronger?"

Tammy yelped and almost fell over again when the aforementioned fairy chimed loudly beside her. "Blue Maiden!" it- she?- chimed in. "The Guardians!"

" _Thank you, Proxi._ " The Blue Maiden smiled and lifted her head to address the five standing further back from the Links. " _I welcome you to our land, Four Sword Guardians. I'm sorry your first glimpse of Hyrule is so poor, and unfortunately, I must ask that you watch over the heroes. I have felt the presence of the Holy Guardian since you've arrived… it seems it has awakened, in this time of need._ "

"Hang on, first glimpse?" Green frowned and turned his head to look at the group of Guardians, who averted their gazes. "They're not from Hyrule?"

" _The Four Sword Guardians are from a world far away,_ " the Blue Maiden confirmed. " _But the Holy Guardian preordained them to be Guardians, just as it preordained you to be Heroes. They are here now to help you defeat Shadow Link and re-energize the sword._ "

"Never mind that," Blue said quickly, stepping forward. "We should break you out first!"

The maiden shook her head. " _No, that's impossible right now. Vaati's placed a curse on the sword that can only be broken when it IS re-energized. Fill the Four Sword with Force first… and then, no evil will be able to stop you._ "

Blue scowled. "It figures Vaati would do that…"

"What about Princess Zelda?" Green interjected urgently. "Is she okay?"

The Blue Maiden closed her eyes. " _...Weak as I am, I can't sense her clearly. But I can feel her spirit… far, far away from here._ "

"She's alive," Blue said seriously, turning to the others. "That's enough for now."

"Blue Maiden?" Nato asked tentatively as he stepped up to stand beside the Links. "May I ask you something?"

The maiden nodded. " _Certainly._ "

"...How many Guardians are there?"

Tammy and Cricket exchanged a surprised look as Cherry and Alvina silently awaited the response. The Blue Maiden sighed.

" _I'm afraid… I have no idea. As you have undoubtedly considered by now, there are five of you, and only four heroes. Logic would suggest that one of you is not truly a Guardian, but… that's impossible for me to say._ " She shook her head. " _I'm sorry I can't give you a direct answer. However, I can tell you this… supposedly, the Holy Guardian bestowed gifts upon each Guardian, giving each of them a power to aid the Heroes in their quest. After your efforts today, the legend is likely confirmed. You, at the very least, are truly a Four Sword Guardian, young one."_

Nato nodded quietly. "I see. Thank you."

"So…" Cherry spoke up. She glanced over at the other three girls that stood next to her. "You're saying that if we see who has a gift and who doesn't, we might be able to tell who's really a Guardian?"

" _As unfortunate as it sounds, that's the only way,_ " the Blue Maiden said sadly. " _I'm sorry, all of you. I haven't been able to answer many of your questions, and no doubt they are numerous… I wish I could do more to help. I'd like to send Proxi with you in my stead to aid you._ "

Proxi chimed happily. "I'll be with you to the very end, Four Sword Heroes! I won't be a bother!"

"Thank you, Blue Maiden," Green spoke up, gazing up at her seriously. "We'll be back to save you as soon as we can."

" _Then go forth with my faith in you, Heroes,_ " she murmured. " _Head east, toward the sea… I sense another maiden trapped in the temple there. Good fortune be with you…_ "

* * *

In the midst of a dark clearing, there shone a single light. It blazed strongly in the pitch black of the forest, piercing the night with its hues of orange and red. The fire, like the young heroes that sat around it, snug in their sleeping rolls, was small- but it was strong enough to light up a whole circle of intense darkness.

"...Hey, question." Green's voice spoke up, in the midst of quiet chatter amongst their various party members. "Whose idea was it to ransack what was left of the castle town for supplies, again?"

"Proxi's." Vio was sitting exceptionally close to the fire, squinting into a book that he held close to his face.

The fairy appeared in their midst with a burst of sparkles and a soft chiming noise. "Did you call me?" she asked curiously.

"Not technically, but this is good timing." Vio glanced up from probably ruining his eyes by reading in the dark. "We salvaged what we could from the castle town, didn't we?"

"Stole." Tammy lazily raised a hand in the distance, interrupting her own conversation with Cricket. "We stole what we could."

Proxi chimed nervously. "Umm… Well, I hate to say it, but… no one was going to _use_ any of it anytime soon. It didn't make sense to just leave without some supplies."

"It's not about the stealing." Vio shook his head. "How are we storing and carrying all of our supplies? That is, how are _you_ doing it? If no one else has noticed yet-"

"-none of us have had to carry a thing since we left." Cherry had her head leaned against a tree and her eyes closed. The cut on her hand had been bound with gauze since their escape from the castle. "You're right. When we stopped to set up camp, Proxi just made it all appear from nowhere. Like magic."

"Oh!" Proxi glowed brightly. "Well, that's simple! See, normally you'd have to carry all of it around, but with fairy magic and an endless dimensional pocket with paradoxical space used to- no, never mind, too long an explanation, it doesn't translate well."

The camp was silent. Vio looked almost affronted.

"...Just go with 'fairy magic' and you'll be fine," Proxi said hastily.

"I'm not complaining." Blue shrugged, flat on his back on his own sleep roll. Red frowned.

"But Proxi! What if we need something from our supplies while we're traveling?"

"Just summon me and I'll get it for you, Red!" Proxi answered him kindly. "I mean, you couldn't possibly carry all of your supplies all the time, you're heroes! You get into too many fights, your supplies will only weigh you down and get in the way! Things will be damaged, items will be lost! ...Besides, you won't look as cool."

"What?"

"N-Nothing." Proxi flapped her wings nervously. "I'm gonna go see how the Blue Maiden's doing, okay? Summon me if you need me."

In another puff of glittering light, she vanished.

Tammy slapped her leg suddenly, as if realizing something completely out-of-context. "Like _magic._ Damn, I get it now." Her head turned toward Nato, who looked up at her with surprised eyes. "Your hands. They're always cold, that's why you don't touch people very often. They're cold because of your ice magic."

Nato nodded silently. Directly across the fire from him, Alvina looked down, then up at the dark-haired boy in relative silence.

"...You knew already, didn't you?" she asked softly. "About your powers."

The rest of the party took their turn to be surprised this time as each of them turned to look at Nato. He didn't flinch under the many eyes that now watched him, waiting for a reaction, a response- and then, he barely nodded.

"You didn't _tell_ us?" Cricket asked, alarmed. "We're your friends, Nato!"

"And you would have accepted me for what I was, no doubt." Nato shook his head. "But in a world like the one we've been living in, powers like I have aren't…" He bit his lip. "...socially acceptable."

"...He's right," Cherry admitted. "You don't hear people talk about real magic in our world. If someone with powers like Nato's just showed up and covered a city in snow-"

"People would riot," Tammy agreed, unusually quiet. "Some people would support him. Other people would get scared and… who knows what they'd do."

Cricket looked down sadly.

"...Is magic nonexistent in your world?" Vio asked curiously, finally closing his book and setting it down some distance away. Apparently, even though he was willing to risk his eyesight, he would not risk a fire, the good, responsible kid he was. "You talk about it as if it's some kind of terrible disease."

"Pretty much," Cherry agreed. "Our world is pretty mundane compared to yours. We're a little out of our comfort zone here."

"Speaking of that." Tammy squinted. "Sleeping on the ground isn't actually that bad. Heeeey, Alviiiinaaaaa." She reached out toward her white-haired friend and made grabby-hands motions. The other girl smiled faintly and stood, crossed the clearing, and settled herself into Tammy's sleep roll beside her friend.

"...What're you doing?" Red asked curiously as Tammy also shuffled under the covers.

"Going to sleep," Tammy mumbled as she tried to get comfortable.

"You're gonna share your sleep roll?" Red tipped his head. "Why?"

There was a pause in the conversation. By extension, because no one else was talking, there was a pause in all sound in the clearing, save for the quiet crackling of the fire. And then-

" _I really can't stay,_ " came the muffled reply.

Cricket gasped loudly and shot up from her slouch. " _Baby, it's cold outside~_ " she sang.

" _I've gotta go away-_ "

" _Baby, it's cold outside!_ "

" _This evening has been-_ "

" _Been hoping that you'd drop in-_ "

" _So very nice._ "

" _I'll hold your hands-_ " Cricket leaned over and grabbed Nato's hands, startling him. " _They're just like ice!_ "

" _My mother will start to worry_ ," Tammy's voice slurred drowsily.

" _Beautiful, what's your hurry?_ " Cricket sang back.

" _My father will be pacing the floor-_ "

" _Listen to that fireplace roar._ "

" _So really, I'd better scurry…_ "

" _Beautiful, please don't hurry!_ "

" _Well, maybe just a half a drink more…_ "

" _Put some records on while I pour~_ "

"It's not even that cold out," Blue mumbled as the gradually more drowsy Tammy and elated Cricket continued their back-and-forth.

Nato smiled awkwardly. "She and Alvina do this all the time, so I'm sure they're just used to it by now."

"Sing, or share sleeping rolls?" Red asked Nato.

Blue groaned. "If they sing all the time-"

"Cricket sings," Nato corrected.

" _I really can't stay-_ "

" _Baby don't hold out-_ "

" _But baby, it's-_ "

" _COLD OUUUUTSIIIIDE._ " Cricket lifted her hands as she belted out the other end of the harmony. She effectively drowned out Tammy with her enthusiasm.

"Okay I'm going to sleep now. Goodbye." Tammy dully waved a hand.

"Goodnight," Cricket corrected, dropping her own hands. "You mean goodnight."

"No, I mean goodbye. Goodbye." And, ending the conversation, Tammy tugged the blankets further over her and Alvina's heads.

The crackling of the flames continued.

Into the night, they kept alive, devouring the firewood that had been fed to it as Vio- closest to the flames- tended them carefully. They started to drop off rather quickly after that; even Cricket, who had been and always was so energetic, eventually curled up under her blankets and was asleep in minutes. The day had been exhausting, and so, too, would the days ahead be- and so, at length, only Vio and Green were left awake in the midst of a dark, tired clearing.

Vio had an excuse, keeping first watch. Green just sighed heavily.

The purple-clothed boy barely lifted his head, not even turning to look at his lookalike. "...Losing confidence?"

Green cast Vio a surprised look. "Yeah… how'd you know?"

"I _am_ you." Vio's tone carried a hint of amusement. "It's only natural."

"...You're right." Green sighed again and lay down on his sleep roll. He kept his movements quiet and his voice low, lest he wake the others. "Does having nine people on our team improve our odds if we have no idea how to _be_ a team?"

"...That's an interesting question." There was a faint rustling sound as Vio turned a page in his book. It seemed he planned to read it while on watch. "On one hand, it's as you say. None of us work as a team. Our group quadrupled, and then doubled again in the span of an hour- half of us have only just met. On the other hand…" Another rustling sound. "There _is_ strength in numbers."

"Strength in numbers," Green repeated lowly. "...Do you think it's enough to help us beat Shadow Link?"

"The four of us alone, I would have said about a 50/50 chance," Vio mused, still not looking up from his book. "Nine of us improves those odds, so… I'm sure it'll be helpful."

They were silent again.

"... Good luck with the watch, okay? ...I should get to sleep." Green turned over onto his side. "Night, Vio."

"Good night, Green."

* * *

In a realm beyond the reach of mortal eyes, in the silence of a place holier than humanly possible, light gently dappled every inch of existence, emitted by a creature of total and unmistakable purity. It flickered with its every movement; its sheer benevolence would blind any lesser being that dared to gaze upon its pure, amazing beauty.

" _Four Heroes have awakened…_ "

Its voice was heavenly, almost unreal; it was rather not like a voice at all, but like a sound one might hear in their head rather than with their ears. And yet, it sounded troubled- and grave.

" _...Four Guardians have been evoked._ "


	2. The Learning Curve Gets Steeper

_me: i think i might discontinue this fic on ffn and maybe move it over to ao3 instead_

 _guest review: i'm sad that this wasn't continued when it's a real awesome story_

 _me: **Did Someone Say Post Chapter 2**_

 _See, this chapter's been finished for a while now, actually, I was just hesitant to post it because I wasn't sure if I had an audience. Apparently, uh, I do, according to my story stats. Just... no one's been reviewing aside from one of my Main Squad. Made me kinda sad, really. Remember, kids, it's important to support your content creators if you like something!_

 _A couple of things I'd like to address before we begin:_

 _ **We're gonna be jumping POVs a lot.** Like, a chapter to chapter kind of thing. Maybe even mid-chapter if the situation calls for it, especially in the later parts of the manga when they all get separated. You'll see the writing style change slightly as such- for instance, this chapter is in Cricket's POV, and it reflects her personality pretty strongly as a result. A later chapter might be in Cherry's POV, which would be different to reflect HER personality. Another one might be in Blue's POV, which would be another change to reflect HIS personality. etc etc._

 _Also, uh, **The Shipping begins in this chapter, BUT don't expect any of it to be endgame.** (First of all, it's a Four Swords OCI and there are five of them, did you really expect there to not be shipping.) What I mean by this is: this series is going to take place over these kids' formative years, and they ARE only twelve as it stands, so don't be surprised if you see them date, break up, so on so forth. People don't always meet their soulmate when they're 12 and stay with them forever, y'know? I'm not saying that it WON'T happen- I've met people who met their spouse at 10 years old. Just... don't get attached._

 _Another thing I want to mention is that I am An Adult with A Job, unfortunately, and as things stand, I only have about two days a week to really focus on writing. (Do you have any idea how weird it is to say that? I'm the same age Tigger was when she wrote The Four Swords: Reiteration. Now THAT'S weird.) The good thing is my life should get considerably less busy in a few months, due to Circumstances, so I'll have way more time to write. Until then, my update schedule isn't going to be very regular at all, so patience is much appreciated. c:_

 _Anyway! That's all I wanted to say. Let's get on to the main event!_

 _(haha guys remember when i said these chapters were going to be 5k)_

* * *

 **episode 2: The Learning Curve Gets Steeper**

There were three things that defined Cricket's life as things stood: action, acting, and adventure. Action- there was never anything _not_ happening in her life. Busy busy busy. Acting- she always found time to do scenes. School, home, wherever someone was nearby to help.

Adventure? Adventure. Heck yeah.

Speaking of adventure.

"Heeeeeey!" Cricket sauntered out of a doorway and into the hall in a long, silky pink dress- she turned her head and looked off into the distance with _perfect dramatic effect._ She mentally congratulated herself on her _amazing_ acting. … Then she broke character and giggled, covering her mouth. "Whaddya think? Whaddya think, Cherry? Is it nice?" She twirled around in a circle, marveling at how her skirt delicately spun around her legs with the movement. "It's so pretty. And nice! But, um, not good for an adventure, I think."

As it turned out, Proxi's advice to them to loot Hyrule Castle Town had been very, very helpful- although they felt bad about it, much of what they had collected could be taken off to various shops and sold to provide funds for their journey. The four heroes- _the Links!_ Cricket called them in her head- were off buying supplies. The Guardians, on the other hand, had been told they were very, _very_ underdressed, and that they really should buy some proper clothes.

And yes, Alvina had been instructed to wear shoes for once. A necessary evil, as Cricket understood it.

Cherry was already sitting, fully dressed, in the corner of the shop as Cricket tried on dress after dress after dress. She had settled on a loose, dark red tunic and practical beige tights, along with a collared undershirt of the same color as the latter. One foot, clad in a dark brown boot, tapped against the floor. She did this a lot. She'd never been very patient, Cricket knew. " _Really_ impractical," she said bluntly. "Are you gonna pick out something useful, or-"

"Yes!" Cricket frantically flapped her hands, totally disregarding Cherry's "impractical" comment. Come on, there were _way_ more underdressed characters in the world of Zelda! "I know, I gotta pick!"

Tammy emerged from her own dressing room, dressed in the only thing they could find for someone her size: a small dress. It was pale yellow and had a long skirt and delicate, ruffled sleeves. The best part about this outfit was the tiny boots they had managed to find- she did, after all, need tiny boots for tiny feet. Cricket giggled silently to herself. Tiny boots, tiny feet. Teeny tiny feets. Hello, teeny tiny little bitty feets, meet teeny weenie itty bitty boots. It's a match made in heaven.

Cherry sarcastically clapped her hands. "Amazing."

"Shut," Tammy hissed, her head lowering dangerously, " _Up._ "

"You kinda look like an angry kitten," Cherry said simply.

She _did._ Cricket gasped delightedly at the comparison, looking her smaller friend up and down. "You _do!_ "

There was practically steam coming out of Tammy's ears, but she didn't speak again- she stalked over to where Cherry sat, flopped down next to her, crossed her arms, and sulked. Cherry drummed her fingers on her knee and looked utterly dead inside. Cricket wondered why, but decided asking was a bad idea.

She turned back to her row of pink dresses, lying flat on a nearby table, and contemplated them. The one she was wearing was long and flowy, but they probably couldn't afford it. That one had a bow, but it was itchy and wearing it had made her feel like she was dying… That one was very, very, VERY cute, but a bit small. She stroked her chin thoughtfully as she regarded the clothes she'd come to Hyrule wearing, neatly folded next to her clothing options. Which dress was most like them?

She looked up when Nato pranced out from down the hall toward them, and he stood with his chin lifted, positioned rather like the letter T. He was dressed in mostly black- black tights, a black undershirt, black boots. He wore a dark blue tunic and had carefully tied ribbons around two locks of hair, which had now been tucked in front of his ears. And draped about his shoulders-

"No," Cherry said bluntly.

Nato huffed and let his arms drop, the deep purple cape he wore dropping with them. "And why _not_ , Cherry? _What_ has anyone here done to earn your scorn today?"

"Don't listen to her," Tammy interrupted, before Cherry could get another word in. "You look great, Nato."

"Now _that_ is a compliment I'll gladly take." Nato smiled dazzlingly, preening himself. "Thank you, Tammy."

"She's just pissy because Cricket keeps trying on dresses." Tammy eyed Cherry with a frosty purple gaze. "It's not _practical,_ or some shit."

Cricket gasped- that was news to her! The whole practicality thing aside (again, who cared?), was she really annoying Cherry? "Really? Seriously?"

"Listen," Cherry started, very crossly, but Alvina floated out moments later. "Floated" really was the proper term; Alvina, despite clearly having feet and using them, never seemed to _really_ walk. She just kind of… glided. The dress she wore now was similar to the pale yellow sundress she'd discarded, but this one was yellow gingham and had short sleeves rather than straps. Likely to the Links' relief, she was now wearing white stockings and brown shoes.

"Oh, Nato." She smiled broadly as Nato turned to face her. "You look wonderful."

"Thank _you,_ Alvina," Nato said warmly. "You look just as wonderful, if not more."

Cherry rolled her eyes. Cricket didn't understand- why was she rolling her eyes already? She hadn't even tried on another dress yet. Was it just the dresses annoying Cherry? Why dresses? Were all dresses deemed impractical? Not all dresses. Didn't choose the dress life.

"Cricket, how are things?" Alvina lightly tipped her head to one side, eyes flitting absently about the room. It _was_ rather a nicer shop than anyone had expected; unfortunately, they didn't have the time or the funds to get anything custom made, so they had tried on whatever had been in stock. If it seemed the right size, on it went. (Tammy had, plainly, had particular difficulty with this.) "Has she found anything yet?"

"Nnnno." Tammy wrinkled her nose. "She keeps going in and out trying different stuff and saying-"

" _I can't decide!_ " Cricket cried out, flapping her hands as she turned to Alvina. "Alvieeeee, help meeeee."

"Oh." Alvina blinked her large eyes at Cricket, focusing on her for the first time, then delicately put her hands together. "Then let's see what we can do…"

* * *

In the end, Cricket didn't buy anything and settled for walking around in the same clothes she'd left in: a pink crop top and a pink skirt, both of which were stylishly asymmetrical. (Cherry probably thought they were impractical. Cricket didn't really care.)

Cricket hummed cheerily and skipped along the road, some ways in front of the other Guardians. This did, however, make her oblivious to Cherry's _silent, passive-aggressive_ judging.

And so, entirely unknown to Cricket, a conversation took place without her.

"So, I've been wondering," Tammy said aloud as they walked. At this point, they were looking to meet up with the Links across town- lucky for them that they'd located a village not far from the Castle Town itself. "About the whole 'Guardians' thing. Remember what what's-his-face said about there being five of us and only four heroes? And the Blue Maiden about the 'gifts' stuff."

"You wanna know which one of us _isn't_ a Guardian." Cherry didn't look at Tammy as she spoke. "We all do."

"Yeah, but- hang on, this is a serious question," Tammy said quickly as Cherry dismissed the statement. "If there're only four Guardians, and we find out who's a Guardian and who isn't through these gift things…"

"What?" Cherry asked.

Tammy hesitated.

"Well, this must be _serious_ if you're not just blurting it out," Nato said, not unkindly. "What is it?"

"... What happens to the last person?"

"Wh- well, it's not like we're just gonna toss them out of the group," Cherry said at once, nonplussed. "For God's sake, Tammy, we're not _exclusive._ "

"Actually," Nato said thoughtfully, "that's an excellent question. What if, for instance, there's a place that only the heroes and Guardians are permitted to enter? Do we just leave the last behind?"

"Yeah, see, that's what I'm talking about." Tammy gestured emphatically to Nato. "With all this 'destiny' and 'prophecy' stuff goin' on, the last person's gonna get shut out of the mix at _some_ point. What do they do? Do they try and get home somehow?"

"We don't have to worry about that until we get there," Cherry said firmly. "It might not happen."

The three of them looked up quickly as Cricket called out- the redhead had darted ahead to meet up with the group of heroes some ways away.

"... We should hurry," Alvina said simply, speaking for the first time in a while.

Cricket, completely oblivious to any talk of Guardians or prophecies, ran toward the Links and frantically waved her hands as she approaches. "Hey! Hey, guys! Hi, we're here!"

To her delight, the moment the Links noticed them, Red hurried toward her. "Hi!" he greeted as they came to a stop in front of each other. "How'd it go? Did you find a place?"

"Oh yeah, we did," Cricket said at once, eager to tell the story. "So many choices! I couldn't pick anything. They had dresses, and pink, and, and pink dresses- lots of dresses, I tried on all these dresses, and um. They were really really nice and I couldn't just pick one."

"Oh." Red grinned and scratched the back of his neck. "I, um… I dunno what that's like. Me and the others wear kinda the same clothes every day."

"You're lucky," Cricket said seriously. "You're not gonna have to pick. It's hard. Anyway, I couldn't pick and my clothes are pretty nice, okay? I wear nice clothes, I think. And Cherry was getting all annoyed at me, I guess. Because I was trying on dresses?"

"Why?" Red blinked. "Don't girls wear dresses where you're from?"

"Yeah, but it's not…" Cricket waved her hands around in circles as she searched for the word. What was that word? What was that word. "... _practical._ For an adventure. Or something. I think?"

"Because it's hard to move around in?" Red asked curiously.

"No, because they got skirts on 'em, which makes like, NO sense, because lots of girls go on adventures in skirts! So, I thought, I'm just gonna wear this!" Cricket twirled around, showing off her _gorgeous_ outfit once again. "I made it so I didn't HAVE to decide!"

"It looks a little… foreign," Red said aloud, watching curiously as Cricket continued to spin. "But they're pretty clothes! They look, um, really nice on you."

Cricket giggled, bouncing a couple of times mid-spin. (This was a very sacred and difficult practice. Cricket was the only known master of it, as far as she was aware.) "Thank you thank you thank you!"

The others had caught up by this point and were talking to the other three Links, but Cricket paid them no mind; Red was fun, and Red was nice, and she wanted to keep talking to Red. Red didn't call her impractical for wearing a skirt. Cricket liked Cherry and all, but she could be such a downer sometimes. It cramped her style a little.

She thought she heard Red giggle. "You're- you're still twirling around, Cricket."

… Was she still spinning? She was still spinning.

Cricket flailed her arms as momentum carried her forward, and started to tumble to the ground. Nooooo. Timberrrrr. And _saved_ , because Red frantically dove into catch her under the arms. Right on cue, Cricket started to giggle hysterically.

"Whoo-oops!" she crowed out. "Re-e-ed, I'm falling. Leave me to dieeeeee."

"Wha- oh! Oh, no!" Red stared down at her in dismay, playing _right_ into the scene. "B-But I can't leave you behind!"

"No, Red." Cricket looked up at him dramatically, although her head must have appeared to be upside down from his vantage point. "You must continue on without me. Your destiny is ahead of you. Remember who you are. You are my son, and the one true king."

Red giggled. "W-What?"

" _Remember,_ " Cricket whispered, sliding her feet so that she slowly sank into the dirt. " _Remember who you are._ "

"Nooooooooo-"

"What are you two _doing?_ " Cherry asked incredulously, from some distance away.

To be fair, it probably looked odd- Cricket was hanging by the forearms in Red's grip, almost lying in the dirt. Still, Cricket thought it was fairly obvious what was happening.

"... It's a really dramatic death scene," she said, staring blankly at Cherry. " _Duh._ "

"We don't have time," Cherry said irritably, "for _death scenes._ Why's it always death, anyway? Don't you do enough death scenes at _school?_ "

"Oh shit, is Cricket doing another death scene?" Tammy appeared out of nowhere and stepped in front of Cherry. "Can I be the cop with the taser again?"

"You're doing a what?" Green asked blankly as Tammy jogged toward the two of them, miming holding up a taser.

"Whenever you're all done." For the first time in several minutes, Vio spoke. Or at least, Cricket assumed he hadn't spoken this entire time- she had a fantastic memory for voices, and she hadn't heard his once in the entire time they'd been here. Of course, his nose was buried in a book, so it made sense. "We're heading in the direction of the Eastern Temple, which is a few days away, so we should really be going."

"Then let's get going," Blue said firmly, turning heel to follow as Vio started away. Green hurried after them; Red quickly pulled Cricket into a standing position.

"U-Uh, looks like we're goin' now!" He grinned nervously as the other three Links walked away. "C'mon, Cricket- you guys, we gotta catch up."

And he hurried after his fellow Links just as Green had, leaving a gap where the heroes walked away and the Guardians still stood. Cricket didn't make any motion to follow; instead, she took in a long breath, and then, gave a musical sigh.

"Oh, God," Tammy said in alarm, looking at Cricket at once. "I know that sigh."

Nato's mouth turned up in an amused smile. "It's been a while since we've heard it."

"He's _cute,_ " Cricket said dreamily.

And it was true- Red had not only played into her _extra dramatic death scene_ (one of her favorite acting exercises during lunch at school), he'd complimented her clothes, giggled a lot with her, and _hadn't_ shot down any of her ideas. Cricket, quite frankly, was in _love_. ...Or, at least, she thought it must be love. In a multitude of rom coms, otherwise known as _romantic comedies_ , she frequently saw love occur at first sight, which was _very_ important. Well, it was that or hate at first sight, then eventual love. The point was, Cricket was sure Red must be The One.

On the other hand, Cherry was looking at Cricket as though she'd just taken a massive bite out of someone else's birthday cake.

"We're trying to save a _kingdom_ ," she said incredulously. "You're thinking about _romance?_ "

"WELL." Cricket puffed herself up importantly- this was an important matter. "I'm twelve. This is 'round the time when we can start having boyfriends, right? Right? So I'm gonna go out there and get one. _And_ a first kiss."

Cherry stared at her, slightly open mouthed. Cricket took it as a compliment- she was _awed_ by how beautiful their love would be.

"Hey, c'mon, let her go for it." Tammy reached out to pat Cricket's shoulder. "We're already waist-deep in hell. It can't get worse."

"I don't agree with that, but I think Cricket having a relationship would be wonderful." Alvina smiled vaguely. "Red seems very nice."

"That's the spirit!" Praising her friends for acting as the voice of reason, Cricket threw up her arms and grinned. "I'm gonna _go for it._ "

"Oh my god- okay. Fine. Go for it." Cherry's voice was listless; she pressed a hand into her eyes and nose while speaking. "Do whatever you want. In-team relationships seem like a bad idea, but, you know. You're _Cricket Roselock._ " She turned around and started to walk after the Links, throwing her hands up in the air as well. "You can do _whatever_ you want."

"That's RIGHT!" Cricket pumped her fists in the air. "I CAN do whatever I want! I'm Cricket Roselock and I approve this message! Or something! I said that right, right? I totally said it right."

"Yeah, you got it." Tammy patted her shoulder again. "You nailed it."

"I NAILED it."

She nailed it.

* * *

Fresh air, good friends. Two of Cricket's favorite things in the world. Of course, she also liked cotton candy. And ponies. And the gorgeous pop star outfits she had designed for herself for when she became rich and famous. But mostly ponies.

Really, walking with four new friends, three old friends, and one _very_ old friend through the fields was an absolutely perfect way to spend her time. And where better to do it but Hyrule? The scenery here was breathtaking, and the wildlife was fascinating. Seriously, the sky was so clear and blue, and there was absolutely _zero_ light and smog pollution. Maybe they would find a wild pony. That would be a good time.

"Uhh, I spy with my little _eye…_ " Cricket wiggled around her index finger as they walked, trying to figure out what exactly she was pointing at. "Mmmmm… I spy something… blue."

"Sky," Tammy said at once.

"Nope."

"Blue."

"What?" Blue glanced backward at them.

"No, not him. Keep walkin', Blue." Cricket made an "I'm watching you" gesture.

Blue raised an eyebrow at her. "No, what're you doing? What's going on?"

"I'm kicking Cricket's ass at I Spy," Tammy said simply.

"It's a game," Cricket explained eagerly, "where you look at something and describe it _really_ badly, and then other people have to guess what it is. It's fun. Describing things bad is fun."

Blue turned his head back to the front, but he still spoke in their direction. "So, what, you said something blue?"

"Are you playing?" Cricket asked curiously.

"Sure, yeah, I guess. Sky."

"Tammy said sky already."

"Nato's tunic," Alvina said dreamily.

Cricket pointed both fingers at her. " _Yes!_ Good job, Alvie!"

Nato smiled almost childishly as Tammy and Blue instantly complained with a chorus of "what"s and "no fair"s and "it's not even blue, how is that blue"s. "Very clever, Cricket," he said cheerfully. "Is it Alvina's turn?"

"I spy something red," Alvina said softly.

Quickly joining in on the game, Red quickly turned his head and grinned at her. "It's me!"

"What," Tammy deadpanned. "Two colors in a row, come on, Al, that's not fair."

"But is it your tunic," Alvina said gently, ignoring Tammy, "or your hat?"

Red's eyes widened. "...Hat?" he asked tentatively.

"Well done." Alvina smiled at him. "It's your turn."

"Aaaaaaaalllllllll," Tammy whined. "Goddamn, I was winning before thiiiiis."

"Okay, okay, I spy-" Red looked all around. "I spy, uh- I spy something- black. I-" He suddenly stopped. "Um, guys?"

"Black." Tammy scratched her chin. "Hmmm."

"If you make," Cherry said dully, "even _one_ black people joke."

"Dude, oh my god, I wasn't even gonna-"

"Well, well, _well._ Look what the cat dragged into the fields."

Anyone who was still talking- meaning those who had been at the back of the group and hadn't yet noticed the situation- instantly fell silent. Cricket felt simultaneously like she wanted to angrily sass off _and_ be sick, because this was clearly very bad. Standing some distance away from their party was the one person who could absolutely ruin this otherwise perfect day for her.

Shadow Link.

He looked as Linkish as ever, and Cricket didn't like the sly, almost _bored_ smile he wore as he looked at them. He looked like a cat toying with its prey, the way he stood in the darkness of a tree's shadow- the way he eyed them like he was planning what dastardly thing to do next. It made Cricket's stomach churn with… with her stomach contents, really, what else would it be churning with, honestly.

"Shadow Link." Green spoke up grimly.

"Here I am." Shadow spread out his arms as if he were going to greet an old friend. "Did you miss me? Time just _flies_ when you're having fun, am I right?"

There was a light _shing_ noise as Blue drew out his sword- the moment he had it out, he pointed it threateningly in Shadow's direction. "Get out of our way," he hissed. "If you want a fight, I'll _give_ it to you."

"Oh, you think I'm here to _fight?_ Not today, kids." Shadow shrugged casually, brushing away the tip of his dark, swirling cap with one hand. " _Today_ I'm here to have fun. Screw with you a little, the works. I might even get some work done. Who knows?"

"What are you talking about?" Vio asked sharply. "What are you planning?"

"I'll make this simple for you idiots." Shadow grinned that nasty, vicious grin that made Cricket feel sick. "I'm gonna count down from ten, and when I get to zero, you'll _probably_ all be dead."

A few various "what are you talking about?"s rose from the party.

Shadow grinned wider. "Watch and learn."

Shadow Link reached toward his belt, and in one motion, made it very clear what was happening: he pulled an actual, real, massive bomb out of a bag and set it down next to him.

Massive, in this case, meant it was three times the size of the tree he was standing under. Somehow he held it in just one hand as he placed it on the ground. The air around him shifted briefly, and he phased right out of existence- and somehow, Cricket noticed with alarm, the fuse had lit.

… The fuse had lit.

There was a giant bomb in front of them. And the fuse was lit.

" _Ten._ " Shadow's voice echoed from nowhere. " _Nine. Eight. Seven._ "

The whole party started _screaming._

" _Hit the ground! Hit the ground!_ "

" _We're still too close, dumbass!_ "

" _We'll never get away in time!"_

" _Oh god, oh god, oh god-_ "

" _WE'RE GONNA GET BLOWN UP, OH MY GOD-"_

No one was quite sure how it happened afterward. It wasn't agreed upon who stumbled into who in their panic, thus sending everyone into a domino effect of sliding down after them. It wasn't clear how some of them managed to slide right into a bush and somehow not be in the bush after- but it was clear that the rest of them followed. All Cricket knew she was on the side who had first fallen in the bush.

There was, quite simply, a hole in the ground. It was covered by a bush that grew around it, all of them fell in, and the landing was extremely uncomfortable. This was mostly because someone's foot was on her back.

She groaned and rolled over as their small group got to their feet- Green, Nato, and Tammy- and very nearly jumped out of her skin when Cherry suddenly hit the ground next to her. The rest of the party very quickly started to drop in, much in the same fashion the first four had arrived: fall, uncomfortable positions, pain, stand up. Shadow's voice continued to echo outside.

" _Two. One._ "

Everyone in the hole covered their ears immediately. Though the explosion that followed was _massive,_ Cricket gave their group a silent cheer and a pat on the back for somehow escaping that catastrophe.

"Hold on a moment!" Vio's voice breathed, the second the explosion had ended. "I understand- quickly, this way, before he gets suspicious!"

He turned heel and ran off in a different direction, down a dirt tunnel. Cricket didn't understand, but Vio did seem to know what he was doing, so she followed and prayed the others would trust as well. To her delight, everyone followed suit- even Blue, who regularly argued with him, and Tammy, who had once said dully that he "must be fun at parties".

Thanks to Vio's efforts, they were back above ground in seconds- he had amazingly located some stairs and guided them up. Strangely, they were a short distance away from where they had started.

" _What_ just happened?" Cherry asked at once, the moment they were above ground. "How'd you know there'd be stairs there? What's going on?"

Vio opened his mouth, but Shadow phased back into view seconds later.

"Oh, hey." His eyebrows rose- he seemed genuinely surprised. "Still here? What's going on, one bomb's not good enough for you? Well, then-"

He reached back into his bag and pulled out _another_ giant bomb.

"Let's go again." He grinned, dropped it next to him with a _thunk,_ and phased out again. " _From the top, with feeling, how about it?"_

"Follow me!" Vio shouted, as Shadow started counting down again in a sing-song voice. "I'll explain in a moment!"

Vio led them toward another bush and hopped into it immediately- seeing how he didn't surface, Cricket figured it was another hole in the ground. Confused, but curious, she jumped in after him without hesitation the moment it was her turn.

As soon as everyone was in (with much smoother landings than last time), Vio immediately made for the stairs.

"This field was used in a war!" he called back to them. "Our father taught us once- how this field was planted over with bushes but had secretly dug underground tunnels in them-"

"- that were used to fire projectiles out of!" Green finished quickly. "That's right, Father told me- told _us_ that story!"

"If this is that field," Vio continued, "then- _cover your ears!_ "

The whole group stopped to clap their hands over their ears as the second massive bomb went off. Vio uncovered his the moment the actual explosion had passed.

"I'll guide you through the field," he said firmly. "Follow me. And make _sure_ Shadow Link sees you above ground between bombs. We can't have him getting suspicious."

They had no choice but to put their lives in Vio's hands; as the physical embodiment of Link's knowledge, he was the only one who knew exactly where each hole was. The next several minutes were spent jumping into holes, covering their ears, and running up stairs.

This was much to Shadow's steadily increasing annoyance.

"Look," Shadow deadpanned once, when they were about halfway across the field, "as much as I _love_ standing here, throwing giant bombs at you, you should've been dead five bombs ago. How about you _stay_ dead this time, huh?"

One rude (but hilarious) retort from Tammy later, they were back underground. Almost everyone was still giggling- Cricket had to admit that even running for their lives was fun if it was with friends.

Above ground, underground. Above ground, underground. It took a long time to cross one little field, but for the sake of Shadow Link not noticing his bombs were pointless? Worth it.

" _How_ are you not dead yet," Shadow said coldly, just after they had surfaced at the end of the field. "Enough talk. I'm getting this done."

He pulled not one, but _two_ bombs from his bag, set them down, and phased out into nothingness again. " _Try and avoid THAT._ "

"We're almost there," Vio said quickly, waving a hand. "More firepower won't affect us down in the tunnels. This way!"

They jumped down the last hole as soon as they came to it- they were very good at this by now. Smoother landings came natural to them, and once again, Vio led them down the dirt tunnel. However, something was… off.

The tunnel was a bit longer than the previous ones.

The exit had only just come into view when the bombs went off- they had still been twisting and turning through the tunnel when the massive explosion shook the earth, bits of dust and dirt falling from the ceiling. If Vio hadn't said earlier that these tunnels were made for war, Cricket would have been very worried that they would cave in. … Actually, never mind, no she wouldn't. Law of adventuring said nothing bad could happen to them.

What _did_ happen instead was a certain someone finally noticed their absence.

"Where did you go…?" Shadow's voice, above ground, was a growl. "I _know_ you're still here…"

Out of curiosity, Cricket crept up to the exit and very quietly poked her head into the bush above it, despite several of the others whispering for her to come back. Shadow was facing the opposite direction… the field they'd crept around was in front of him. This tunnel must have led around and looped them behind their original position. If there was some way to ensure Shadow wouldn't notice them, they could very well just sneak off. But there was no way.

Cricket knew _exactly_ what she had to do instead.

She turned her head and managed to make eye contact with Nato. " _On my mark,_ " she mouthed.

Nato's eyebrows furrowed; he didn't understand. He would, once Cricket made her move. It was only a matter of time- and that time was _now._

Cricket lunged up the stairs and raced the short distance across the field to the tree where Shadow stood, and before anyone could stop her- before anyone could even begin to scream a " _Cricket, no!"_ \- she had leapt onto Shadow's back and locked her arms around his throat. The effect was immediate: Shadow yelled aloud and clawed at her arms, trying to fight her off. Cricket clawed anywhere she could in return, yelling into his ears at the top of her lungs.

"GET _OFF_ OF ME!" Shadow screamed, as the rest of the party finally emerged. Cricket was too busy hanging on for dear life with one arm and fumbling around Shadow's waist with the other to really notice- she finally found the bomb bag tied around his waist, and with a swift tug, it came off. Around this time, though, Shadow had taken a multitude of steps backward. He failed to notice-

He fought with a vengeance and screamed wordlessly as they stepped into the sunlight, and Cricket realized it was _hurting_ him. If she could keep him out here long enough he might be weakened- he might even die. The thought tempted her, but her whole body felt sick with guilt just entertaining the idea. Amidst his screams of agony, she lifted the bomb bag high into the air.

"NATO!" she screamed. "GO _LONG!_ "

And she hurled it as high as she could. Nato reacted fantastically- he shot across the field and thrust out a hand to shoot a bolt of ice at it. The icicle, razor sharp, flew through the air and ripped the bag roughly in two.

Cricket dropped off Shadow's back, letting him desperately retreat to the tree's shade to nurse his wounds from the sunlight.

"... You," he hissed, voice ragged, his whole body contorted in pain even though he'd made it out of the light. " _You._ "

"Me!" Cricket puffed out her chest and got to her feet. "Your attack is _over_ for the day, evildoer! I, Cricket Roselock, destroyer of evil, have DEFEATED you!"

" _Shut up,_ " Shadow snarled, and there was such venom and raw _hatred_ in his tone that Cricket deflated a little. "I'm not… going to forget this… You hear me? ...I'm going to come after you. M-Mark my words…"

He drew in a pained breath, his red eyes burning with malice. "I'm going to _kill_ you, _Cricket Roselock._ "

"And I," Cricket said seriously, voice lowering as the others approached, "am _not_ gonna kill you."

Shadow spat on the ground, gave her a last withering look, and vanished into another world for the last time.

"Cricket!" Cherry's voice sounded behind her, and Cricket turned, beaming, relieved to talk to a friend instead of getting death threats- and her heart dropped into her stomach. Cherry's expression was twisted with fury, her shoulders tensed and hands balled into fists. And her expression was fixed on _her._

"C-Cherry," Cricket started, but Cherry wouldn't have any of it.

" _What were you thinking?!_ " Cherry roared, gesturing wildly. " _You almost got killed, you know that?! I can't BELIEVE you!"_

"Cherry, stop it!" Tammy shouted at her. "Cricket just saved us from-"

" _Stay the hell out of this, Tamiko White!"_ Cherry screamed, whirling on her. Tammy shrank backward and hid behind Alvina.

"C-Cherry, it was all I could think of!" Cricket stammered out, alarmed. "Somebody had to do somethin' and-"

" _Then we should have planned on it! GOD, Cricket, you can't-_ " Cherry tore her hands through her hair and gave a wordless yell of frustration. " _You can't just do whatever you want because you CAN!_ "

"Cherry," Green attempted to cut in, his voice firm, but even that attempt withered and died in Cherry's onslaught.

" _Do you even think before you do anything?! Do you think about how going into a fight in a skirt and no armor's gonna get you killed, do you think about fighting a war, do you THINK, Cricket?!_ " Cherry shrieked, gesturing at her viciously. Cricket grimaced, looking down at her feet- she'd never seen Cherry this angry before. At least, not at her. " _Do you ever stop for a second and think, hey, MAYBE this is a bad idea, and I know that because I have a BRAIN?!_ "

"Shut UP, already!" Cricket's head shot up, and she watched in amazement as Blue elbowed his way forward and got up in Cherry's face, his expression set in a scowl. "What was _your_ plan, huh?! Sit around and wait for him to find out where we were?! I didn't hear you coming up with anything!"

Cherry opened her mouth, but Blue wasn't finished- he pointed at Cricket, but he glared dead on into Cherry's eyes. "She did something, and you did nothing. I don't care what the hell you think about it, because it _worked_. So back off unless you've got a _real_ problem with it."

It became very quiet.

… Cherry didn't speak again, still glaring back at Blue. It was Green who broke the thick silence as he shook his head.

"Look, we still don't really know how to work together," he said tentatively, as though afraid someone might blow up on him as well. "Sure, Cricket was really brave and pulled off that plan by herself, but if it hadn't worked… I don't know where we'd be right now. We've still got a long way to go…"

"In her defense." Nato spoke up evenly. "Cricket _did_ let me know before she started her plan. I wouldn't have known what to do otherwise once she threw the bag."

Cricket almost blurted out a "yeah, see?" but didn't speak for fear of making Cherry angrier.

"And- and it's not fair for Cherry to yell at Cricket like that," Tammy called nervously from behind Alvina.

"The point here," Vio pointed out, folding his arms, "is that executing a plan like that was foolish and dangerous. … It did work, though, so this is one incident we'll have to put behind us."

"Well, cheers to everyone who helped then!" Cricket threw a fist in the air, desperately trying to bring some positivity back to the group. "Good job for the tunnel thing, Vio! Good job for the bag, Nato! And good job to me, 'cause I was awesome!"

"G-Guys," Red interrupted- he'd shrunk back when Cherry had started yelling, same as Tammy. "Um, I think we should get out of here. Shadow Link might come back…"

"Red's right," Green said quickly. "We should go."

The air was still thick with tension as Blue and Cherry glowered at nothing, but miraculously, everyone cooperated- as soon as Green and Red started off in one direction, the rest began to follow in a slow, even trickle. Cherry stormed off first, but Blue was one of the last to leave where he stood. Cricket didn't move from the spot for a couple of moments, turning her gaze back to her feet, and it took all her might to start trudging on after the rest of them.

… Cherry didn't just blow up like that for no good reason. Cricket had seen Cherry lose control before, and usually it was because they'd done something truly awful or stupid- most of the time she was pretty calm, if not a little deadpan. She hadn't always been that way, either; when they were kids, Cherry had been a lot quieter, often getting picked on by other kids at their school. But she'd been through a lot since then, and now…

"Hey, um…" Cricket blinked and looked up, realizing Red had come back to walk by her- his face was set into a worried frown. "Are you okay?"

Cricket smiled broadly, though it felt really strange. She felt more like Red looked right now, honestly. "Yeah, I'm fine! Did you see how Nato and I took out Shadow's bomb bag?! It was so awesome."

"Oh… yeah, it was!" Red smiled, but just for a brief moment- then he looked at her carefully, biting his lip. Cricket was pretty sure he could see right through her; she was a good actress, but no one in their right mind would feel okay after being yelled at like Cherry had done.

"...Oh, um," he started. "What was that game you were playing earlier again?"

"... You mean I Spy?" Cricket smiled at him. "Do you wanna play?" Anything to take her mind off the whole thing. Cherry's face was still burned into her eyelids- she wasn't sorry for her plan, but she hadn't expected her to get so angry… She shook herself. Time to stop thinking about it. There was nothing she could do about it right now.

"Y-Yeah." Red grinned nervously. "You wanna ask Blue to play, too?"

Cricket brightened and nodded- she'd meant to thank him for standing up for her, anyway. "Sure!"

"Great!" Red smiled broadly and took her hand- Cricket couldn't help but giggle as he led her forward. Maybe she _did_ still have some stuff to worry about, but Red was really nice. It was awfully sweet of him to try and help her forget about what had just happened.

"Blue," Red called out, as they approached him. Blue glanced over at them, first at Red, then at Cricket.

"... What?" he asked, after a pause.

"Hey, so, I just wanna say thanks," Cricket said honestly, before Red could speak. "No one's ever, like… stood up for my ideas like that and it was really cool. So, thanks and stuff."

Blue shrugged, averting his gaze. "It's what I would've done. No big deal."

"Aw, don't say that, it was a big deal and you're a cool guy." Cricket grinned winningly at him. "A coooooool guy. A really cool guy."

Red's grin rivaled her own. "Yeah, the coolest! … Well, Vio's cool too, but so are you."

"Green's not cool," Cricket said seriously. "Red doesn't think Green's cool."

Red giggled nervously. "I-I didn't say that…"

" _Exactly_ ," Cricket stage whispered.

Red had to muffle his laughter behind his hand. Cricket could have sworn she saw Blue smile a little.

"So _hey,_ cool guy." Cricket poked Blue's arm. "You wanna play I Spy with me and Red? That game we played earlier? You were doing really good earlier. We should play it again."

Blue didn't answer right away, still looking off into the distance. … He spoke up after a brief moment. "Yeah, sure. Uh, I see something with… ears."

"Ooooh, that's a weird one!" Cricket pushed her worries aside, finally focusing on the game. She swung her arm with Red's, hand in hand, as they walked. "Is it one of us?"

"Nope."

"Is it one of the rest of our group?" Red suggested.

"Still no."

"... Oh, it's that bird over there!"

"Birds don't have _ears,_ " Blue said incredulously.

"Yeah they do! They got ear canals and stuff, they just don't have the outside ear thingy like we do, 'cause they're birds and I guess they don't need it, and…"

* * *

"Cricket."

"Mmmpfhg. I'm awake." Cricket squinted into the darkness- she was on watch tonight as the rest of them slept soundly around the campfire they'd built. Boy was it hard to not fall asleep. The trees and the firelight were really relaxing… "Whoozat?"

"It's me." Cricket's eyes slowly adjusted to the dim lighting, and she finally recognized Cherry as she sat down next to her.

"Oh, hi, Cherry. Izzit your turn yet?" Cricket yawned widely, rubbing her eyes with her palms. Cherry _did_ have the watch after her… maybe she'd dozed off for her whole shift. Her stomach twisted nervously- maybe Cherry was going to yell at her again. … No, Cherry wouldn't yell at her, or anyone, for no good reason.

"No, actually," Cherry replied. "I couldn't sleep, is all. … I've been thinking a lot."

"Mm." Cricket nodded sagely. "How's your hand?"

"Huh? ...Oh, this?" Cherry held up the hand that had been wounded at the castle a couple of days previous. "It's healing. Thanks for asking."

Cricket nodded sleepily. "Cool, cool."

"... Listen, I wanted to apologize." Cherry scratched the back of her head uncomfortably. "For earlier. I said some stuff that was really out of line and uncalled for."

Cricket blinked at her.

"... Look, do you remember when we were little?" Cherry asked her. "Y'know…" Her eyebrows were furrowed. "My mom used to take us to school every day. She was getting really sick, so she couldn't walk, and when we had to cross the street…"

"Yeah, 'course," Cricket recalled- she remembered the little houses they lived next to each other in, both of them five years old when they'd met. The elementary school had been just across the street, so they'd all walked together. Cherry's mom had been in a wheelchair. "Oh, oh! Remember when we were in first grade I almost got hit by a car? Remember? Man, that was super crazy."

"Oh, you remember." Cherry shifted uncomfortably. "So then… you remember I used to lead you across the street after that, right?"

"Uh huh." Of course Cricket remembered- they'd walked like that every day for the rest of grade school. Cherry had firmly held her by the hand as they went, and wouldn't let go until they'd made it safely inside the school or back home. "You like, wouldn't let go at all."

"My mom told me to do it," Cherry admitted. "She got scared that something bad was going to happen to you after that, and she told me to look out for you."

Cricket grinned. "Those were the days, right? The crazy days."

"Yeah…" Cricket's smile dimmed at the forlorn tone in Cherry's voice. "Listen… It's just, since we were little, you've been charging into things headfirst. It didn't matter then, because we were stupid little kids, but- but now it does matter, because you could get seriously hurt or killed, and if something bad happened to you and I couldn't do anything about it, I-"

Cherry swallowed hard. Cricket looked at her silently, no longer smiling.

"... I don't know what I'd do." Cherry's voice came out strangled. "I know I'm not really good at showing it, but I'm- I'm scared for you. I'm sorry I yelled, it's just, when I saw you hanging off Shadow Link's back, I-I thought I saw _your_ life flash in front of my eyes, y'know?"

Cherry's whole body jumped when Cricket hugged her tightly.

"You're still my best friend," Cricket said fondly. "We got into a whole lot of messes together when we were little. But it's okay now, right? We're older, and stronger, and we're on this cool adventure thing together. You and me plus Tammy and Alvina and Nato, plus the Links… we can handle anything."

"I… guess." Cherry didn't sound convinced.

"It'll be okay," Cricket told her bracingly, pulling back and patting Cherry's shoulders. "This is just like that time in fourth grade when we were the only kids in our class who weren't white."

The sides of Cherry's mouth twitched upward. "How is this anything like that?"

"Well, remember, 'cause people were all, 'Cricket, if you're Japanese, why are you so bad at math?'" Cricket grinned. "And 'Cherry, if you're black, why're your parents white?' A whole buncha stupid questions one after the other. Us against the world. Same goes here! A whole buncha stupid monsters for us to fight, and we gotta take 'em all on. Except this time we got help."

Cherry snorted. "Yeah, I guess so."

"And I forgive you for earlier, too. I'm just happy I have such a good, cool, awesome friend who's always looking out for me and who's got my back and stuff." Cricket booped Cherry on the nose. " _Boop._ The awesomest friend."

Cherry swatted at Cricket's hand, snickering quietly. "Alright, alright. You know what? I'm gonna take over watch early. You look like you're going to fall asleep any second. Get some rest."

Cricket beamed.

"The _really_ awesomest friend," she said slyly.

"Yeah yeah, flattery gets you everywhere. Go on, get out of here."

Cricket giggled and got to her feet, and headed off for her sleep roll. She had a feeling she was going to sleep soundly tonight. After such a great day, and with such a strong, reliable, fantastic friend on watch, who wouldn't?


End file.
